During the summer Yohan Cabaye managed to piss just about everybody off by being subject to an Arsenal transfer bid. Unfortunately, the talented Frenchman had his head turned and put Alan Pardew in a very tough position.
It’s believed that Cabaye was keen to move to the Emirates and that he even tried to push through a last minute transfer. For these reasons, Alan Pardew opted not to play him in the opening games of the season.
Whilst this punished Newcastle as much as Cabaye (the performances where he was absent weren’t great), it does seem to have put the player in his place. He seems to be a humbled man.
It was interesting to see as well that Cabaye was overlooked by France coach Didier Deschamps, for an International friendly against Belgium and was left out once more against Belarus and Georgia last month.
This has obviously had an effect on Cabaye. When he was recently asked whether he feared for his future with his national team, he replied: “Yes, of course. It wasn’t easy staying at home”. (Source: The Star)
Of course, he knows how these events have come to pass. He knows that decisions that he made led to this eventuality. There’s a good chance he won’t be so rash in the future.
The purpose of this article isn’t to attack Cabaye, a man who has already suffered enough for a rather meagre sin. A sin that most half-decent footballers commit two-or-three times throughout their career.
Besides, the time’s right for Newcastle fans to start backing Cabaye once more. He’s been impressive during recently weeks, with his first half performance against Cardiff City standing out in particular. He looks fired up and ready to make his mark.
What’s important is that he doesn’t just deliver a neat range of passing and technical ability. He also works hard, gets stuck in a tracks back. He’s an important player for Newcastle and deserves to be treated as such.
Given Newcastle’s standing at the time, it’s not all that surprising that he was attracted by a club like Arsenal, who are currently sitting pretty at the top of the Premier League. As such, it’s time to forgive and forget.
I personally hope that Yohan Cabaye manages to fight his way back into the French team, regardless of his future plans.
What’s your take? When it comes to Yohan Cabaye is it time to let bygones be bygones?
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