'See you soon' - Newcastle United £30m signing emotional in message to former club

Newcastle United’s latest summer signing has bid an emotional farewell to his former club.

The Magpies completed a £35m deal to sign Monaco’s highly-rated midfielder Aladji Bamba on Friday as the France Under-20 international became their fourth signing of the summer transfer window. The 20-year-old met his new United team-mates on Friday but both he and fellow new addition Bazoumana Traore were not considered for selection for Saturday’s pre-season friendly draw at National League neighbours Gateshead - and it remains to be seen whether they will be in Eddie Howe’s squad for Wednesday night’s trip to Championship club Bristol City.

There are high hopes for Bamba after the Magpies monitored his progress during a breakthrough season with the Ligue 1 club as he made 25 appearances for Monaco after making his senior debut with a late substitute appearance in a 3-1 home win against Le Havre on the opening day of the campaign. The midfielder had been a regular in the Ligue 1 club’s Under-21s and Under-19s sides in previous seasons and took the step up to first-team level in his stride over the last year.

Bamba will now hope to make a big impact during his time on Tyneside as he embarks on a new chapter on his career - and that will come after he reflected on his time with his former club and admitted he will ‘always follow’ events at the Stade Louis II Stadium.

In an emotional social media post, the Magpies new boy said: “To all the Monegasque family, it’s time for me to say goodbye. To the supporters, managers, coaches and staff...a big thank you for these five beautiful years spent by your side. To all my team-mates from the training centre to the professional team, THANK YOU for all these moments that I will always remember. The title in Gambardella, my first steps in pro, the music of the Champions League at Louis II, there are so many more. I’m off on a new adventure, but I will always follow with great care those in the diagonal jersey. See you soon.”

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