It doesn't really matter what Cheick Tiote says any more, really: he's going to be linked with a move away from the club as long as newspapers have a rumour column to fill, and those supposed comments that he wants out will equally never go away until he actually does. According to the Mirror, Napoli are looking at a £12m January bid for the Ivorian enforcer, as Rafa Benitez wants to add some bite and dynamism into his midfield. If he wants to do that though, he's probably going to have to change his bid to more than the £16m valuation Newcastle have put on the player. Whether these rumours are based on anything concrete or not remains to be seen, but Tiote has angled for a move in the past - particularly to Chelsea who couldn't match the club's higher valuation at the time - and he would probably be tempted by the suggested offer of £80,000 a week. He's always been committed to bettering himself as his "advisors"/cousins will always happily admit around Newcastle, and Napoli might be the step up he craves with English suitors probably priced out of a move. Alan Pardew is unlikely to be happy with a sale, but he's going to have to be realistic. His club have changed direction to focus more on youth developed within their ranks, and Mike Ashley loves a profit, so £16m for a 28-year-old, with Mehdi Abeid probably already lined up to take his place in the squad might be too much to pass over. And frankly, it might not be the worst thing to move Tiote on, if Abeid can progress as he seems to be already. Plus of course there's a supposed link to free agent Lassana Diarra to take into account. Would you sell Tiote if the price was right?
