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Hatem Ben Arfa Cheated Out Of A Face-Off With Alan Pardew

10 years ago
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Mike Ashley and Alan Pardew eventually got their wish AFTER the transfer deadline window had closed, with Hatem Ben Arfa confirmed as a Hull Player just before 1am.

The French winger was one of the deals where Premier League clubs were granted an extension beyond the 11pm deadline to complete paperwork, Falcao to Man Utd another to go through in the early hours of this morning.

As our friends at Sky Sports  zoomed between the different clubs, tumbleweed was the only action for Newcastle United.

The unruly young, and not so young, gathered and jostled Sky’s presenters as they relayed news of the latest signings at a long list of clubs but it became quickly apparent that Newcastle’s only intention was to get rid of players, rather than bring in the much needed quality that is needed up front and in defence.

[intlink id=”46791″ type=”post”]First Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa was jettisoned on a season long loan[/intlink] to (Champions League side) AS Roma, then the Hatem Ben Arfa farce came to its eventual but surprising conclusion.

Ben Arfa was initially signed on loan by Chris Hughton in August 2010 but was a Mike Ashley bargain when bought after Alan Pardew arrived, Newcastle getting the winger on the cheap as he recovered from the shocking injury inflicted in the outrageous assault by Nigel De Jong during a match against Manchester City.

A long recovery period ensued but Hatem came roaring back in the second half of the 2011/12 season and formed a brilliant attacking trio with Ba and Cisse, while Yohan Cabaye pulled the strings.

Such was his form, Ben Arfa found himself an irresistible choice for France’s 2012 European Championships squad.

It has been pretty much downhill from there as relations between the player and Alan Pardew have hit rock bottom.

As to where the blame should be apportioned between Ben Arfa, the manager and whoever, is something that will always be open to interpretation.

However, despite Hatem’s Newcastle contract ending in June 2015 anyway, the deal has been announced as a season long loan.

One side effect of this is that Ben Arfa WON’T be able to face Alan Pardew and Newcastle United in the two games between the clubs this season.

Whether this was a key part of the deal is open to question.

However, September 20 sees Hull visit Newcastle and unless there is a major lift in spirits, unlikely with only a visit to Southampton in the meantime, the atmosphere could be well toxic for Alan Pardew.

Every chance the Newcastle manager will be hiding in his dugout for the duration, just as he did against Cardiff in the final home match of last season.

Under Mike Ashley, the more things change at Newcastle United, the more they stay the same.

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