MOUSSA SISSOKO claims Newcastle United have finally replaced Yohan Cabaye – two years after his compatriot’s departure.

The Magpies have struggled to find a player capable of picking out a match-winning pass on a regular basis since Cabaye was sold to Paris St Germain for £20m in January 2014.

But Sissoko thinks Jonjo Shelvey has already displayed the quality on the ball which can make Newcastle tick again – like they often did when Cabaye was in the mix.

Shelvey rolled in the ideal pass for Aleksandar Mitrovic to score the winning goal against West Brom on Saturday, while his performance from start to finish highlighted why Steve McClaren was so keen to buy him.

Newcastle already look to have struck a good £12m deal for the England international and Sissoko admits he is exactly what the team has missed for the last couple of seasons.

"I really believe Jonjo is the replacement (for Cabaye) two years after,” said Sissoko. “Jonjo, like Yohan, is a very good player. He sees the game so easily and delivers great balls.

“For me, he is the same style as Yohan and the same qualities so for me he is an excellent signing for us.

“He has played four games for us and you can see what he brings to the team. It has to be good for us. Now we have to grow with him, make sure we make the most of his vision and his range of passing to pick up as many points as we can between now and the end of the season.”

Newcastle have signed new midfielders since Cabaye’s move to Paris St Germain, but despite being appreciative of what the likes of Henri Saivet, Cheik Tiote and Jack Colback have to offer, Sissoko believes Shelvey is something different.

"When we lost Yohan, the club did not bring in another player like him. There was a gap. We still had good players like Cheik and Jack but they are very different styles. They were not like Yohan,” said Sissoko.

"With Jonjo, he is the perfect style for us because he fits in so well. Players like myself and Gigi Wijnaldum like to go forward and he can pick us out so easily. It makes such a difference and we must feed off him.

“It worked against West Brom with Jonjo spotting Mitro and it will happen again. He has already become a very important member of this team because he is different.”

Newcastle’s second win from their last four matches has lifted them out of the relegation zone but they know they can’t afford to rest or they will slip back in.

McClaren takes his team to Chelsea this Saturday, but expects to have a lengthy injury list reduced by the time they face Stoke on March 2.

Sissoko said: "Now we must try to pick up a result at Chelsea. That's three good home performances in a row we have had.

“Away from home, sometimes we have played well but lost - of course, I am not talking about Everton which was bad - but now we have to be consistent and show what we are capable of not just at home but away from home too.”

McClaren has learned that Chinese club Shanghai Shenhua remain interested in signing Tiote with their transfer window is still open.

The Ivorian stayed on Tyneside after a failure to agree terms on a £4m move, and he impressed at St James’ Park on Saturday with his performance.

Sissoko thinks the Newcastle squad has the extra quality to really kick on.

He said: "The players who have come in will help us stay up. The club has brought in some very good players. We now have a good team.

"I believe for the rest of the season, we can look at it positively and we can play some good football and win some games.

"We deserved to beat West Brom so we are very happy. This week will feel much better for us than last week after Everton. They were some hard days for us.

"But now we have a tough game coming up against Chelsea on Saturday, We have not picked up results away from home but now we believe we can go there and get something.”