Arsenal phone call saw star refuse to play while on team bus – he tried to force transfer

If this summer’s transfer window proved one thing, it’s that players who try to force their way out of a club these days are often rewarded with moves. Arsenal ’s Viktor Gyokeres, Newcastle ’s Yoane Wissa and Liverpool ’s Alexander Isak all managed to secure big transfers after practically downing tools and refusing to play for their former clubs .

But there was a time where players perhaps didn’t hold so much power. In the summer of 2013, Arsenal tried to prise France international Yohan Cabaye away from Newcastle with a £10million bid.

The Gunners’ offer came on the eve of Newcastle’s Premier League opener, a visit to Manchester City , which successfully turned the midfielder’s head. Then-Magpies boss Alan Pardew claimed Cabaye refused to play against City, which forced the manager to leave him out of the matchday squad .

Cabaye ended up failing to secure his move to north London and remained a Newcastle player, initially begrudgingly, before sealing his move to Paris Saint-Germain the following January.

Pardew recently recalled on Sky Sports : “Well, I had a very unfortunate incident with a player that I loved, and I know he loved me. But he wanted to go to Arsenal, Yohan Cabaye.

“We were travelling to Manchester City and he had a phone call on the bus. He didn’t want to get off the bus, he didn’t want to play. And I was like, ‘You’re taking all of our set plays, you’re doing everything today. I mean literally everything. You can’t let the team down.’

“Obviously, [they were] in his ear and he wanted to force through the move. In the end I had to take him out of the team. It completely put us in a terrible position. I was kind of unforgiving at that point to him.

“There is an interesting point about Cabaye because it just goes to show you the relationship with players and managers. I was just like, ‘I can’t believe you’ve done it.’ And in the end we didn’t let him move, we stood our ground.”

Cabaye, however, has issued his own take on the saga in the past, stating he was left upset by Newcastle for closing the door on a potential transfer, despite initially promising him they would explore a move should he want it.

"It was quite close," Cabaye told Four Four Two . "Arsenal put a bid on the table. The deal [when I signed for Newcastle] was, ‘OK, you come and we’ll see how you adapt. The English market can be quick, and if there’s something, we’ll sit and have a chat.’

"So, OK, that’s fine. It was the first time I was leaving a club, moving from Lille to Newcastle, so I didn’t know about transfers.

"The fact is, the first season was really good and after that there was Euro 2012, of course, which went well for me. Then there was Arsenal’s interest, and what I didn’t understand was that the club closed the door on it – they didn’t want to have a discussion.

"I asked why, and the answer failed to convince me. I asked them to speak [with Arsenal] and try to come up with a better solution – if there’s no solution, I can understand that, and I’m happy at Newcastle.

"But I wanted to play for a club with that standard, with all due respect to Newcastle. In the end, they didn’t want to, and that’s life. That was their choice."

Cabaye went on strike and also missed the following game against West Ham in the hopes of securing his transfer to the Emirates Stadium. While he admits he could have handled the situation better, he claims he remained fully committed to Newcastle once the transfer window closed.

He said: "I felt that someone lied to me. It [going on strike] was a way to express my disagreement – but today, of course, I can say that it wasn’t the right way. After that, I think I showed to everyone that I was fully committed to Newcastle, 100 per cent, and there weren’t any problems at all."

Cabaye made 93 appearances for the Magpies, scoring 18 goals over the course of three seasons. After two seasons in France, where he won two Ligue 1 tiles, he was signed by Pardew in 2015 – this time with Crystal Palace , before helping them reach the 2016 FA Cup final.

Pardew said: “He sulked for a little while, but then he did get a move – and then of course I re-signed him at Crystal Palace years later!”

Cabaye, who retired in February 2021 aged 35, said: "Pardew’s a very good human being. Alan always behaved in the right way towards me; even when he wanted to say that I needed to change or improve something, he did it in the right way. He helped me a lot with my adaptation in England. He taught me how to develop, how to adapt, and he was really important for me. He still is."

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