Newcastle United boss Alan Pardew is happy to put the club's contract row with Demba Ba to one side.

He insists that it never crossed his mind to leave out Ba again after his Everton rant.

He said: "I don't think he deserves that. I wouldn't go down that line. We are too intelligent to fall into that trap. Demba Ba will face Norwich."

But Pardew insists that ­Newcastle must get more out of both Ba and his fellow ­countryman ­Papiss Cisse when they play 4-4-2, as they will, against his Chris Hughton, his ­predecessor as manager, this afternoon.

Pardew said: "In all honesty Demba hadn't been playing well. But he came on against Everton and proved what a great player he is.

"We all need to focus our minds on the job in hand. That is what we are doing.

"Demba and I are quite ­intelligent about the way we go about things.

"Things have been said in his camp which have been ­unfortunate. I got an apology."