It's hard to judge a majority of Newcastle's signings (especially the French ones) as they all had to go through the Alan Pardew school of development. And quite simply, the former Magpies' boss didn't express a desire to bring players through the ranks. Arguably Remy Cabella's time on Tyneside could have been improved had he been given some better guidance and not used as a scape-goat for a number of embarrassing defeats. Pardew liked a certain calibre of player (mainly the appalling Yoan Gouffran) and although Hatem Ben Arfa's attitude was questionable at times, he didn't stand a chance during his reign. Steve McClaren (at the minute) appears to be different and has demonstrated signs of favouring attacking, possession-based football (even if it led to dismal defeat against Swansea) rather than a negative breed of tactics. The former Derby boss could shape the team around Thauvin and give him a freedom that many technical players weren't given under previous management.