Newcastle: 10 Best Foreign Signings In The Premier League Era

4. Laurent Robert

Four years after the departure of Ginola a new Frenchman with a taste for the spectacular arrived on Tyneside with a hefty price tag on his Gallic shoulders. It didn't take Robert long to show why Sir Bobby had parted with a large chunk of his transfer budget to acquire the then 26-year-old's rare talents. His cannon of a left foot supplied 10 goals, most of them breathtaking long-range thunderbolts, in his debut season as Robson's new look Newcastle stormed into the Champions League. Often leaving Premier League goalkeepers a whimpering mess at the mere sight of him lining up to shoot, Robert would continue to thrill and exasperate the Toon faithful over the next four years. His attitude and impassive temperament when it came to defending put him at loggerheads with Graeme Souness and eventually led to his departure from St James' in 2005, stripping down to his underwear and distributing his kit to the crowd after the final home match of the season against Chelsea.