Newcastle boss Steve McClaren has fully denied that Ivory Coast midfielder Cheick Tiote is ‘poisonous’ to the dressing room.
There have been persistent rumours that Tiote isn’t happy on Tyneside, and that he tried to pursue a move away from the club in the Summer. The latest criticism of Tiote came in the form of Sky Sports’ Sunday Supplement programme, in which the guests blasted his attitude.
McClaren, however, has categorically denied that he is causing any sort of unrest behind the scenes.
In an interview with the Chronicle, the Toon boss had this to say:
Cheicky couldn’t cause trouble anywhere. He is frustrated that he’s injured and he’s not playing. When he’s not playing, he’s not happy. He’s definitely not happy about it. In terms of causing disruption? By no means, he just wants to get fit.
I have heard the stories and I just laughed because I know him very well. I had a him as a boy at FC Twente and have watched his progress. It doesn’t make me laugh much, but it makes me smile a little.
Tiote hasn’t featured regularly for Newcastle since suffering a knee injury while on international duty last season, but he has played in three games so far this season.
It has also been revealed that Karl Darlow will be out of contention for tonight’s game, and McClaren said this in regards to his goalkeeper selection:
Rob Elliot or Tim, I will have to decide on that. One of the good things is a few players have come to me and told me they don’t want to rest and want to play. That’s good. It will be an interesting game to see what the reaction of the players and fans will be
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