On this day (June 10) in 2011, Newcastle United signed Yohan Cabaye from LOSC Lille. The 35-year-old made 93 appearances in all competitions, scoring 18 goals with 14 assists and spent two-and-a-half seasons at St James’ Park before being headhunted by Paris Saint-Germain.
Cabaye only cost Newcastle £4.5m and was value for money to say the least. He helped the Magpies finish in their highest position since 2003 – 5th with 65 points from 38 games under Alan Pardew.
The French international arrived in the North-East at the same time Papisse Cisse (£10.8m from SC Freiburg), Davide Santon (£5m from Inter Milan), Gabriel Obertan (£3m from Manchester United), Rob Elliot (£130k from Charlton Athletic), Sylvain Marveaux (free transfer from Stade Rennais), Mehdi Abeid (free transfer from RC Lens) and Demba Ba (free transfer from West Ham United) were brought in.
The summer spending spree worked too, as Newcastle had their best season for nearly a decade and Pardew was named Manager of the Year for leading the Magpies into Europe. Cabaye was deemed a Newcastle Player of the Season contender for his efforts.
Newcastle struggled the following season and Cabaye would eventually move on midway into his third campaign.
In other news, Florent Indalecio trains with friend and hails teammate’s kind gesture
