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No new striker signed: McClaren ‘I do like Emmanuel Riviere, I like him a lot’

8 years ago
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With the transfer window closing in only 10 days times and seemingly no new striker in the pipeline, Steve McClaren has declared that Emmanuel Riviere ‘has been doing well in training’.

The Newcastle Head Coach saying that he likes the former Monaco forward ‘a lot’.

Now back fit and available, Emmanuel Riviere made it onto the bench against West Ham for the first time this season, though he didn’t get onto the pitch.

Speaking to the Chronicle, Steve McClaren did at least just about hold himself back from saying that Riviere ‘was like a new signing’.

The goals may not be flowing easily for Aleksandar Mitrovic but his form has markedly improved in recent games, with McClaren at last going for a more attacking style which has opened things up for Newcastle’s attacking players such as Wijnaldum and the Serbian centre-forward.

However, if no new striker is brought in this month, even on loan, then you would really have to start worrying about the survival chances if Mitrovic picked up an injury and/or suspension(s).

Papiss Cisse is out injured until March at the earliest and is totally unreliable, whilst Emmanuel Riviere showed absolutely nothing to suggest he can score goals in the Premier League.

It took the journeyman striker until the final away match of last season at QPR to finally get a PL goal and that was a total fluke, the Frenchman kicking the ball with one foot off the other and baffling the keeper.

Emmanuel Riviere only managed 10 goals once in the much weaker Ligue 1 and sadly like most of the other French players now stuck at the club (Marveaux, Obertan (via Man Utd), Gouffran, Haidara) he looks exactly what he is, a bargain buy from France who it was hoped would magically transform into a Premier League player.

Steve McClaren on Emmanuel Riviere:

“He has had five months out and had a mini pre-season because of injury.

“We didn’t want to throw him in too early but he has been doing well in training.

“I do like him, I like him a lot.”

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