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11th July 2016
04:10pm BST

Sissoko has made noises about leaving St James' Park in the past, claiming he wishes to play for a Champions League side.
"I gave everything there for three-and-a-half years. I hope that they will be smart enough to understand that, to continue my development, I need to keep playing at the highest level," Sissoko said in June. "As I want to stay in the France team I could not stay in the Championship. There will be discussions. I hope they will go in my opinion. I want to leave. "I want to continue my career in England, at a club that plays in the Champions League because I think this best fits my style of play."However, he did little on the pitch last season to warrant such a move, and was part of the Newcastle team that were relegated from the Premier League. The club's manager Rafa Benitez reportedly doesn't want to sell the player, and the club are believed to unwilling to accept any bids lower than £35m. Which is just as well, because even by the standards of modern football's inflated transfer fees, surely no club is crazy enough to spend this much on Sissoko. Right?

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