Newcastle allowed Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa to depart on loan for the 2014-15 season to Roma - a deal which soon turned into a permanent £5.5 million transfer - despite the fact they had just three out-and-out centre-backs in the squad at the time. Yanga-Mbiwa struggled during his time on Tyneside, no doubt, but he was often played out of position - and he did captain Montpellier to the Ligue 1 title, so he does have some class. While Newcastle were struggling to send out a back four comprised entirely of players in their correct positions during the 2014-15 season, Yanga-Mbiwa was playing well in the Champions League with Roma and helping them to claim second spot in Serie A. The Magpies may regret signing Yanga-Mbiwa for £8.5 million in the first place, considering he was chief scout Graham Carr's pick and Alan Pardew seemed like he simply didn't fancy him, but the subsequent sale was also premature. A France international, Yanga-Mbiwa has since moved to Lyon this summer and will likely grace Europe's premier competition once more. He should have been nurtured to become Fabricio Coloccini's successor - as, admittedly, they struggled to play alongside one another - but instead he was given up on.
NUFC editor for WhatCulture.com/NUFC. History graduate (University of Edinburgh) and NCTJ-trained journalist. I love sports, hopelessly following Newcastle United and Newcastle Falcons. My pastimes include watching and attending sports matches religiously, reading spy books and sampling ales.
