Saturday 12 September 2015 23:42, UK
Papiss Cisse will not be allowed to leave Newcastle this season, according to manager Steve McClaren.
The 30-year-old Senegal international was rumoured to want a move away from St James' Park this summer and continues to be linked with clubs in the Middle East where the transfer window is yet to close.
However McClaren, who took charge of Newcastle at the start of the season, insists that the striker remains firmly in his plans.
"He's not going anywhere. I came here and there was a lot of debate and talk about Papiss coming or going and whether he would be staying," said the former England manager.
"I said to [managing director] Lee Charnley, if you look at his record it's fantastic. Eleven goals in 22 games was fantastic and, to be perfectly honest, he was the one who was missed when the team weren't winning those games.
"He's a threat. He's a goalscorer. When you've got Papiss in the team you always have a chance of winning games, and I think that's what he did last season.
"I think Newcastle have a better chance of winning with Papiss in the team. He played the first two games and not the last two, but we hope he comes back ready to prove a point."
Cisse could be in line for a return to the Newcastle starting line up for Sunday's game away at West Ham.
The Magpies will be without the suspended Aleksandar Mitrovic, who has already collected two yellow cards and one red in his first five appearances in English football.
"You've seen in his general play he's quite aggressive anyway," admitted McClaren.
"We don't want to take that away but he needs to calm down. He needs to have the fire in the belly but the ice in the head.
"He needs to control his emotions and he knows that, he will identify that himself. But he wants to score that first goal."
