10 Talented Newcastle Players Who Were Well And Truly Pardewed

6. Moussa Sissoko

Moussa Sissoko was Newcastle's most creative player last season by a country mile. He was also probably the most criticised midfield from the Gallowgate, and fans continue to claim he is terrible despite fine performances for France and stats that indicate that he is being held back by something at Newcastle. The answer to the question of why Sissoko cannot recapture his France form for Newcastle is that his manager doesn't know what to do with him. Remember, Pardew is the manager whose simplistic concept of attacking is letting Gabriel Obertan run in a straight line down the side of the pitch to confuse defenders who've been dazzled by 75 minutes of sideways passing and long balls over the heads of the attacking players who like the ball at their feet. So it's no wonder Sissoko puts his head down and runs - it's exactly what he's being told to do. Doing that, he's unable to link up with the strikers or midfielders in the way he does for France. He's forced to try and take the man on with power and hard-work (the pillars of Pardew's misguided philosophy) and inevitably, he runs into a brick wall more often than not.