Goal : Newcastle United manager Alan Pardew is expecting interest in midfielder Cheikh Tiote during the January transfer window but insists “a lot of money” will be needed to prise the Ivorian away from the Sports Direct Arena.
Tiote has been linked to some of the Premier League’s top clubs, including Manchester United and Chelsea, but recently signed a long-term contract with Newcastle and Pardew is keen to hold on to one of his most important players.
“He’s a big target because he’s a great player, and great players are going to be targets,” Pardew said during his press conference ahead of Saturday’s match against Swansea City.
“We are always on our guard with Cheikh because we realise that to us, he is very, very important and it would be very, very difficult to get him out of here.
“We have one or two players here that top clubs, I’m sure, will be interested in, but the one thing I would say on that is that they are going to have to pay a lot of money to take anybody out of here because we are obviously in a good position, not just on the playing side, but financially as well.”