Papiss Cissé the latest to benefit from Newcastle’s efficient recruitment philosophy

It’s taken 12 months and two transfer windows, but Mike Ashley has finally fulfilled his promise of splashing the Andy Carroll cash, by delivering Newcastle United fans a new £9m number nine.

He’s much travelled Senegalese striker Papiss Cissé, who comes with a solid pedigree after six fruitful years in France, followed by a successful stint with Bundesliga side SC Freiburg. Hard working, powerful and instinctive, Cissé has the right qualities and talent to suit English football, and with 24 goals in 34 games last season, combined with nine from 15 this, also boasts a reputation as a clinical goalscorer.

Many have known about Cissé for years, recognising him as an under-rated forward who has always scored goals wherever he’s played. Yet in the modern world of lazy scouting, plenty have looked, but nobody has taken the calculated gamble on a forward clearly hungry to succeed.

But that, in a nutshell, typifies Newcastle’s new player recruitment philosophy, which is driving them up the table. In the summer, out went the high earning but less efficient Joey Barton, Kevin Nolan, José Enrique, Wayne Routledge and Sol Campbell, and in their place, cheap, foreign talent with a point to prove.

Yohan Cabaye, Demba Ba, Gabriel Obertan, Davide Santon and Sylvain Marveaux all came in, with many accusing Newcastle of penny pinching and pointing the finger at the pantomime villain Ashley, still sitting on the £35m Carroll fee from the previous January.

The reshuffle has proved to be an instant success, and works on a basic formula: find good players in good leagues and do your research. It’s a simple strategy, but the Premier League is a bubble where reputation can often proceed ability, and as such, many have a short-term inconsistent approach to buying players. Newcastle though, now seem to have found the balance, intensively scouting players recognised as top of their respective foreign leagues, and moving quickly to secure them at bargain prices, taking advantage of the unwillingness to gamble many English outfits still have.

Cissé is the latest, known as a good player who can score goals by many clubs, but those in need of goals would prefer to focus on the likes of Bobby Zamora, Carlton Cole and Andy Johnson. Again, known as decent options, but in a world where value for money is vital, Premier League clubs need to work harder and become more switched on to the talent in the foreign and lower leagues.

If it can work on drama prone Tyneside, it can work anywhere.

Tagged in: Alan Pardew, Andy Carroll, football, Newcastle, Papiss Cissé, Premier League