The Rumour Mill – Dame N’Doye

Dame N’Doye Nowadays, clubs seem to be in never ending periods of transition. Players come and go at a startling rate, even with the current economic climate. Unfortunately, this means that we as a club must occasionally observe players seeking pastures new, and it looks as though Demba Ba could be the next one to do so.

But if Demba were to depart, we must react in the solitary way which modern football deems fit and sensible – sign someone else. Therefore, I wish to introduce to you FC Copenhagen’s Dame N’Doye, potential replacement for our most prolific striker last season.

You may notice that a pattern is developing at St James Park, as N’Doye could become the third Senegalese striker we sign in a year. In fact, the front man has a pretty good record for his country, scoring 4 in 12 since his debut in February 2011.

But it is his record for Danish giants FC Copenhagen which make him hot property in Europe. The 27 year old has scored 59 goals in 104 games over the past four seasons with The Lions, earning himself top scorer of the league in the last two seasons.

Standing at 6ft 1in, N’Doye is a threat in the air and does an excellent job at holding off opposition, thus protecting the ball and creating opportunities.

However, there are some glaringly obvious concerns with the striker. Firstly, the league he plays in is nowhere near the standards of the Premier League. Admittedly, he has a good record in European competition, with 16 goals in 36, but many of those came against mediocre opposition. N’Doye would really need to up his game if he were to adapt to the Premier League.

Secondly, almost all of his goals are scored and created by his right foot. This may be fine in the Danish League, but in the Premier League, defenders will simply show him onto his significantly weaker left foot.

Despite these clear risks, N’Doye could be leaving Denmark for a fairly low sum of £6m. It is therefore possible that Pardew will approach the striker, especially as he already has experience of playing with Papiss Cisse for Senegal. It must be said that the Ba/Cisse partnership has been unsuccessful, but perhaps N’Doye could form a deadly Newcastle attack with his compatriot.

Current Ability: 3/5

Likelihood of signing: 3/5

Transfer value: £6 million