I’ve seen Cisse a few times in Bundesliga, definitely looks like a player capable of cutting in the EPL. Pure goalscorer, will compliment the bustling Ba very nicely.

Freiburg are a right mess at the moment. That spate of sackings, and now this. I’m not sure if the promotion from within is always such a great idea, if the right man isn’t there, but we’ll see sure.

I do want to defend a couple of things though, I don’t actually refer to the Bundesliga as being at a lower level.

It was that Freiburg are a comparatively lower-level club, that’s within their own league (compared with some of the Bundesliga’s more renowned clubs). Your sporting director even said they knew they wouldn’t be able to keep hold of him, as I quoted.

I would say that he could have played at a higher-level club within the Bundesliga as well as elsewhere.

And compared to Newcastle too…which is, I would say, a bigger stage, a team which has European ambitions this season, plays in front of the 3rd biggest crowd in England, is richer, and has delivered European football a few times in the last decade.

So I didn’t mean for that to come across as a dig at the Bundesliga, the comparisons between the quality of the leagues wasn’t really part of my argument. (for the record, I do think that he will be up against, with some exceptions, better defences in the PL, but I didn’t want that to be in the argument as it’s very subjective. I’m happy for people to disagree with that)

Would disagree with some of it myself though. I thought Freiburg have been brain-gratingly negative over the past few months to be honest.

I’m a bit disturbed by the reference to the Bundesliga being a lower-level as well, but that’s all personal opinion I guess.

I made more SCF home games than I missed last year & I reckon he’ll do well for Newcastle. Good in the air, strong, fast, a great touch, occasionally guilty of bad misses but always there to meet the ball.

A lot less then when Ba made his way over and we have seen what he can do.