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Yohan Cabaye is comparing the Newcastle of then and the Newcastle of now. He felt moved, briefly, to go on strike as he sought a transfer from the former 10 years ago, eventually leaving for Paris Saint-Germain. Supporters, with hindsight, have some sympathy.
But first, there is another big difference given the passage of time. Cabaye’s hair. His quiff back then was as stylish as the France midfielder was a player. Today, though, he is assistant director of PSG’s youth academy.
‘My hair is finished now?’ he asks, mournfully, the cut somewhat shorter and tidier. ‘I was younger, so I could try some things. As a director, I can’t do it. I have to be more professional!’
‘It’s one of my best memories,’ he says. ‘Sometimes, I put it on the TV for my son, just to show him. I cannot wait to be there. It’s the first time I have come back to St James’ to watch a game. I know my colleagues from Paris don’t know about the atmosphere, I will let them discover it as a surprise! For sure, it will be one of the best nights ever in Europe.’
Yohan Cabaye played for Newcastle United between 2011 and 2014, making 93 appearances and scoring 18 goals
Cabaye is now the assistant director of the Ligue 1 champions’ impressive youth academy
The 37-year-old returns to Tyneside to watch his two former side do battle in Europe
In Cabaye’s first season, following a bargain £4.5m transfer from Lille in June 2011, Newcastle finished fifth in the Premier League. But, with Mike Ashley as owner, they signed just one player that summer and, despite making the quarter-final of the Europa League under Alan Pardew, they flirted with relegation for the majority of the campaign. A £10m offer from Arsenal at the start of the 2013-14 season saw Cabaye refuse to play in one match when he felt the club had deceived him, but he remained to score seven times by January. That was when a £20m deal with PSG was agreed and he left to play Champions League football, winning back-to-back French titles.
‘It was a different project at that time (at Newcastle),’ he recalls. ‘We finished fifth and our season after reminds me a little bit of West Ham last season. They won the Conference League — and we made the quarter-final in Europe against Benfica — but the Premier League was difficult, because if you don’t have the squad to compete, those two competitions are not easy.’
Speaking in 2021, Cabaye said of his decision to strike: ‘When I signed for Newcastle, the word from them was “You play for us, if you’re doing well and have the opportunity to go somewhere else, we will talk. But when someone put in a bid for me, they just said, “No”. I was feeling betrayed. Looking back now, I know that saying, “I don’t want to play” is not good behaviour. If I could go back in time, I wouldn’t do it again.’
Combining domestic and European affairs is again the challenge. The difference is that Newcastle now have owners with the ambition to compete on all fronts. It is safe to assume, then, that Cabaye would not want to leave the current version of the club?
‘Yes. I’m glad to see Newcastle at the top, under the lights, in Europe,’ he says. ‘I can see the new ownership is working well. I had the chance to meet Dan Ashworth (Newcastle sporting director) at the draw in Monaco and we talked together. He is someone with competence, good quality, and I know they are going the right way.
‘It could have been easy to spend money after money after money on players that don’t fit the project. But they are doing well. And to see St James’ with 52,000 every game, screaming, this stadium is so loud.
‘It’s been 20 years without the Champions League. If the club wants to be a big team in Europe, they have to play Europe every season. But they have the potential, for sure.’
Potential is also the name of the game in Cabaye’s current role. He has helped with the development of the Campus Paris Saint-Germain, the club’s new training ground that, for the first time, will house men’s and women’s senior and academy teams.
The poster boy for the PSG youth set-up is Warren Zaire-Emery, who became the youngest player to start a Champions League knockout match in February, aged 16. The Paris-born midfielder is in the squad for tonight’s game. So, is there scope for homegrown talent to emerge at a club with PSG’s wealth? ‘The last couple of years, everyone thinks we didn’t see it a lot, but the pathway has always existed,’ says Cabaye. ‘This season and also last, Warren played well, really well, and a lot.
Despite moving on to Crystal Palace (pictured 2015) Newcastle has a place in Cabaye’s heart
Cabaye has credited Newcastle’s new owners with bringing back European nights to Tyneside
‘For us, he deserves what he gets. I know his mentality will give him the will to improve. For us, that is something really helpful. We have an example. When we talk about Warren with the younger players, we put the level really high in terms of the standards we expect — intensity, behaviour, professionalism. He’s a complete player. To do what he does, at 17, not many can do it.’
So, with one of the most talented teenagers in world football, Cabaye’s return, St James’ bouncing and not to mention Kylian Mbappe, tonight’s game is laced with intrigue.
But, before kick-off, Cabaye has a coffee date in town. ‘I have to see my old hairdresser, Patrick,’ he says. ‘He’s a good friend.’
Sadly, it is too late to rekindle the quiff.
