Toon Army love Hatem, but is comeback kid really the saviour?

By Simon Bird

Published 13:30 20/09/11

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Hatem Ben Arfa is one of those players who has got better in the mind, without actually having played much.

He's the enigmatic Newcastle midfielder who, during an injury hit year long absence, has kept Newcastle fans wondering how good he really is.

A star signing, with oodles of promise, and a bit of a spiky attitude, who has tantalised supporters with the unanswerable question of what might have been last season had he been fit.

And when the club failed to sign a new No9, the youngster's return to fitness, to fill an advances centre midfield role, or one just behind a lead striker, assumed even greater significance.

Ben Arfa will take his first steps towards full rehabilitation tonight in the Carling Cup against Nottingham Forest, and he will be the focus of an unfamiliar starting line up.

But what do we really know about the French winger, and his prospects of adding an extra dimension to the attack?

Precious little from his time at Newcastle, unfortunately.

There was that wonderful strike against Everton last season, three darting, lively appearances before injury struck.

It is a sparse return for a year on Tyneside that was quickly ruined by that terrible double leg break in a tackle with Nigel De Jong last October.

Yet in the minds of those of us who follow the fortunes of Newcastle, the importance of Ben Afra's return has taken on a significance that we can only hope is justified.

Alan Pardew described him yesterday as a "Heineken player" because, yes you've worked it out, he can reach parts that other players can't.

That's an apt description from what we saw briefly last season, but there has to be time and patience.

At the end of last season senior players were seriously worried about Ben Arfa's ability to get back to his best.

His fitness was low, he didn't look the same player in training and he was ultimately pulled from the first team squad, told he wouldn't play in the end of season games, and sent on another special training camp.

That all seemed to be resolved when he came back in pre-season and looked decent against Darlington. Then he injured his ankle in America and has only just recovered.

Ben Arfa has done well to get through the mental challenges of being injured so long, never mind the physical hard slog, and worry whether his leg would heal properly.

His appearance tonight has to be seen in the context of a long recovery process. He might play brilliantly on adrenaline. Or he might need a few games to pick up the pace.

But he will add an unpredictability and an elusive quality to the Newcastle attacking play.

Last season he was played left wing a couple of times by Chris Hughton, but drifted inside.

Pardew will likely play him off a bigger striker like Leon Best, in a more central role. He comes alive with the ball at his feet 40 yards out trying to make something happen and find an unusual angle.

Pardew is also aware of the potential downside of Ben Arfa.

Newcastle are not good enough to have only ten men working hard off the ball. Ben Arfa must be part of the work ethic that has kept the Geordies unbeaten this season. We want Laurent Robert style skill, but not the former winger's tackling back.

Then there is the infamous attitude.

Newcastle always seem to have a big players on their books with a bit of devil in them.

Ben Arfa will take up that mantle if his past history of spats is anything to go by.

Pardew admitted as much on Monday candidly saying they will have their run ins. "I won't say he is high maintenance, but he is not low maintenance!" said the manager.

Ben Arfa will be welcomed back in to the fold by team mates and fans alike, and we relish the prospect of him developing his career at St James's Park.

And we can only hope that he's as good a player as our distorted memory, and inflated hopes, have led us to believe during his absence.

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