Earlier in the season when Demba Ba was banging in the goals for Newcastle United, much was made of the fact that he had strawberry syrup shipped in from France. In one interview Ba did with Geoff Shreeves for Sky Sports Demba proclaimed his love for syrup and the rest is history. Now you’ll find plenty of strawberry syrup in the Newcastle canteen, which is also being stocked with Papiss Cisse’s food of choice: Yassa!
Papiss Cisse has done a great interview with the Telegraph and the help of an interpreter I suspect, has revealed his love for Yassa. Yassa is a Senegalese speciality, a spicy curry made with either chicken or fish. Popular throughout west Africa, the dish is flavoured with lemon and onions and it seems that Papiss can’t get enough of it, with dinner lady Liz cooking it in the Newcastle United canteen for Cisse.
Papiss told the Telegraph: “[Newcastle have added] a Senegalese dish called Yassa [to the canteen menu], which I love. I can’t cook it, but the chef at the club, Liz, does a really great job. It’s fantastic.” Cisse continued: “It is another example of how the club has made me feel so welcome and I appreciated it very much.” This just goes to show how hard Newcastle are working to ensure that their new players settle in quickly and it’s certainly paying off.
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First with Ba and now with Cisse, Newcastle are showing how important it is to go the extra yard and ensure that every player at the club is happy. Word is starting to spread about the great atmosphere in the Newcastle changing room as well, as Papiss explained: “I spoke to Demba Ba before I came here and he told me how good it was. I saw them play and I thought, yes. It has been really easy to fit in. Everyone has helped me, especially the manager.”
Cisse wasn’t done there either, finally stating: “The other coaches and the players and directors have all made me feel very welcome and I felt at home straight away. It has not been difficult to settle in and be happy. It makes me happier when I score lots of goals and so far I have done that.” This is all great to hear and hopefully will encourage more top players to come to Newcastle and experience the fantastic feeling at the club for themselves.
I’ll admit I’ve tried some of Demba Ba’s strawberry syrup myself and although it’s pretty sweet, it’s not half bad. Next I’ll have to give Papiss Cisse’s yassa a go and if Ba wants to start scoring again then maybe he should too!
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