It took a while, four months to be exact, but Arnaud Lusamba finally has a new club – and it isn’t Newcastle United.
Why the former Nice midfielder isn’t competing with Jonjoe Shelvey and Isaac Hayden for a place in Steve Bruce’s engine room, however, is anyone’s guess.
In July, it seemed only a matter of time before Lusamba put pen to paper at St James’ Park.
Just six days after Nice confirmed the former France U19 international had been released after his contract expired, The Chronicle reported he was bound for the other side of the Channel with Tyneside his likely destination.
Steve Nickson, Newcastle’s long-serving head of recruitment, had done ‘much of the groundwork’ ahead of a deal that, at the time, looked as good as done.
But then the trail went cold.
And, 16 weeks later, the mystery of Lusamba’s future has been solved. A player so heavily linked with top-flight clubs in England will play second-tier football in France instead.
Ligue 2 Amiens have finally offered the free agent a home, signing him to replace Rangers newbie Bongani Zungu.
“Arnaud has the advantage of being very versatile. I am convinced his best position is in the heart of the game, as a playmaker or in a midfield three,” Amiens coach Oswald Tanchot tells 11Amienois ahead of Lusamba’s potential debut against Sochaux tonight.
“Beyond his position, what interests me about him is his technical ability, his quality of pass.”
Technical ability and passing quality are two attributes Newcastle’s midfield has often been accused of lacking during the Steve Bruce era.
But with the Magpies boss making it clear he wants players with a proven Premier League track record in his squad, perhaps Bruce felt Lusamba wasn’t a risk worth taking.
Especially when Jeff Hendrick, who arrived from Burnley weeks after the Lusamba links died down, felt like the definition of a ‘safe bet’.
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