Newcastle complete Cisse signing

Newcastle have signed Senegalese striker Papiss Demba Cisse from Freiburg on a five-and-a-half-year deal for an undisclosed fee.

The Premier League club confirmed the deal tonight and are thought to have spent in the region of £10million on the 26-year-old, who is an international team-mate of new Magpies strike partner Demba Ba.

Cisse has nine Bundesliga goals to his name so far this season and scored for his country in their 1-0 victory over Kenya in a warm-up game for the CAF Africa Cup of Nations, which gets under way in Equatorial Guinea and Gabon on Saturday. Cisse will wear the famous number nine shirt on Tyneside.

"I would like to thank everybody for their welcome, and for inviting me to sign for the club," he said. "It is an honour to play for such a big club and I am looking forward to it. I want to pay back the confidence the club have shown in me, and give the supporters something to be proud of."

The forward added: "I am aware of the huge importance of the number-nine shirt, and when I spoke with the manager he made it very clear how important this shirt is. I will treat it with respect and I hope to do my very best in this shirt."

Magpies boss Alan Pardew added: "Ever since Andy Carroll left, Papiss was my first choice in the specific role he has at the end of the play. He is a finisher with an already-established CV in the Bundesliga, where we have monitored him for the best part of two years.

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Newcastle agree Cisse fee with Freiburg

Newcastle United are closing in on a shock swoop for Freiburg striker Papiss Demba Cisse. Press Association Sport understands the Magpies have agreed an undisclosed fee for the Senegal international, and that he is on Tyneside today with a view to tying up the transfer.

Cisse, 26, would join compatriot Demba Ba, who left for the CAF Africa Cup of Nations having scored 15 goals to date this season, on Newcastle's books.

Pardew revealed at the start of the January transfer window that the club were unlikely to recruit a striker this month after ending their interest in Sochaux's Modibo Maiga, but would instead concentrate on landing a central defender with Steven Taylor sidelined for the rest of the campaign by an Achilles injury.

However, it emerged in recent days that the Magpies, who failed to land a big-name forward during the summer despite a concerted search, had rekindled their interest in Paris Saint-Germain's Mevlut Erding. But it appears that it is Cisse, who has also been linked with arch-rivals Sunderland and Tottenham Hotspur in recent weeks, who is now the focus of their attention.

He has nine Bundesliga goals to his name so far this season and scored for his country in their 1-0 victory over Kenya in a warm-up game for the CAF Africa Cup of Nations, which gets underway in Equatorial Guinea and Gabon on Saturday. Cisse looks to have become available following Sebastien Freis' arrival at Freiburg from Cologne.

Ba, of course, has been linked with a move away from Tyneside this month after it emerged that he has a release clause in the contract he signed last summer as Newcastle took a gamble on his long-term fitness.

That has paid off handsomely with the former West Ham United man having established himself as one of the most prolific goalscorers in the Premier League this term. While angry that news of the clause has leaked out, the Magpies are confident they can hang on to a player who has shown few signs of wanting to leave a club where he has rapidly established himself as a local hero.

Attracting an international team-mate might well strengthen his ties and persuade Ba that his future remains in the north-east. Newcastle climbed back into the top six as a result of their 1-0 home win over Queens Park Rangers on Sunday, and head for Fulham at the weekend knowing an extension of their form over the first half of the season could see them fighting for European qualification.

Cisse was rated at around £14m during the summer, but it is understood the fee is significantly less than that with the Magpies continuing to exploit the European market, a policy which has proved hugely productive in recent seasons.

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Pardew: Cisse was my first choice

Newcastle United manager Alan Pardew believes forward Papiss Demba Cisse is the perfect replacement for Andy Carroll after landing the player on a five-and-a-half year deal from Bundesliga side Freiburg.

The 26-year-old Senegalese international will join compatriot Demba Ba at Newcastle once the pair return from duty at the CAF Africa Cup of Nations and Pardew admitted he was delighted to have signed the striker.

"Ever since Andy Carroll left, Papiss was my first choice," Pardew told Newcastle's website. "He is a finisher with an already-established CV in the Bundesliga, where we have monitored him for the best part of two years.

"Unfortunately he was out of reach, financially, for us in the summer, but it recently became apparent that Derek Llambias (managing director) and Lee Charnley (club secretary) could do the deal in this window. I spoke to Demba [Ba] about Papiss, and he cannot wait to join up with his team-mate in Newcastle."

Cisse scored 22 goals last season in the Bundesliga and has already scored nine goals this term. He will be handed the No9 shirt by the Magpies, but insisted he is not daunted by the prospect of following so many famous names. Cisse said: "I am aware of the huge importance of the No9 shirt, and when I spoke with the manager he made it very clear how important this shirt is. I will treat it with respect."

Pardew added: "Our fans know that this shirt brings its own pressures. One of the iconic numbers in world football - the number nine of Newcastle. It will be only fair that Papiss is given time to understand the responsibility it brings. As the manager, I wish him all the luck in the world to bring success to himself and this club."

Pardew had been expected to dip into the transfer market during the winter window, but a central defender was thought to be at the top of his wishlist.

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