Yohan Cabaye Looks Set to Stay at Newcastle United

As the minutes tick by on transfer deadline day, one player that looks increasingly like he’s staying put this summer is Newcastle United midfielder Yohan Cabaye.

In the face of Mesut Özil’s imminent £40 million-plus arrival at Arsenal from Real Madrid, the Newcastle Evening Chronicle’s Lee Ryder is reporting that the Frenchman is almost certain to remain on Tyneside.

And it seems the club’s owner Mike Ashley may have had a hand in persuading the international to rethink his St. James’ Park future following a reported £10 million bid from Arsène Wenger a fortnight ago.

In fact, according to sports journalist and broadcaster James Pearce, Ashley took the unusual step of allowing the player to listen in on initial discussions with the Gunners.

Via his Twitter account earlier today, Pearce revealed:

Magpies manager Alan Pardew described the initial offer from the North Londoners as “disrespectful” via BBC Sport, and though speculation surrounding the 27-year-old continued to gather momentum, no improved offer was forthcoming.

Interestingly, Cabaye has also been linked with a move to Paris Saint-Germain over the past few weeks, where boss Laurent Blanc is understood to be a huge admirer of the playmaker.

The former Lille man even sat out the Toon’s opening two games of the Premier League season in an attempt to force a move, only to resurface from the bench during Saturday’s win over Fulham.

In essence, that appearance suggested a truce had been reached between the player and his club, and a lack of deadline day enquiries seem to indicate that Cabaye will continue to wear the black and white shirt this term.

Speaking after the game at the weekend, where the Tourcoing-born star received a mixed response from the terraces after refusing to play for United, Pardew told Lee Ryder at the Newcastle Evening Chronicle:

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“I thought he got an even reception. There were some boos and cheers. Some indicated they still love him.”

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And in his post-match press conference, via MSN Video, he added: “I thought the fans called it right. Half of our fans were more or less saying they weren’t sure about what he’d done, and the other half were just pleased to see him.

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“I think that was fair, but to be fair to Yohan he’s so focused on his game that he put it all to one side and came on and played a normal game for us. That takes some doing in that situation, so hats off to him.”  

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In a late twist, none other than Sports Direct News, owned by Ashley himself, claimed to have an exclusive regarding a last-minute bid for Cabaye from Manchester United, but the story has not been reported elsewhere.

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