Newcastle United boss Alan Pardew will make it clear to Demba Ba how much he is wanted at the club.

The Evening Chronicle says Ba is be told just how much he is wanted on Tyneside.

Ba - who still could yet trigger a £7m release clause in his contract - is due back on Thursday morning and will have a routine meeting with Pardew, where the LMA and Premier League manager of the year will remind him just how important he is to his plans next season.