10 Talented Newcastle Players Who Were Well And Truly Pardewed

4. Yoan Gouffran

Though he wasn't exactly prolific at Bordeaux, Gouffran was essentially signed as a forward, and quickly became a victim of his own willingness to work hard, which clearly pricked up Alan Pardew's ears and filled his heart with that admiration he only gets when players fight to the death for his cause. Because he would run back and help cover defence, Gouffran was increasingly dropped backwards and moved further away from being the striker he had been in France, drying up his goals - despite a reputation as an astute finisher with both feet. Under Pardew, Gouffran is now little more than a wide midfielder, encouraged to run as much as possible, but not too far forward as to expose the defence to counter-attacks, and he has been badly saddled by Pardew's obsession with industry. He might start in an advanced role, but with the responsibilities he has to cover the entire flank (especially when he plays in front of the usually immobile Paul Dummett) he is nowhere near as effective as he once was.