PAPISS CISSE could be part of the Newcastle United squad for Saturday's trip to Hull City after Senegal crashed out of the Africa Cup of Nations in Equatorial Guinea this evening.
Cisse was a 54th-minute substitute as Senegal suffered a 2-0 defeat to Algeria, a result that means they have finished third in Group C of the competition.
While Algeria and Ghana have progressed to the last eight, Senegal have been knocked out at the group stage.
As a result, Cisse is free to return to England and while his exact travel plans are still to be confirmed, he should be back in training ahead of Saturday's game at the KC Stadium.
His return would represent a major boost to Newcastle head coach John Carver, who is still searching for his first win since replacing Alan Pardew at the end of last month.
Cisse scored five goals in his last six appearances for Newcastle prior to leaving for Africa, and has served the three-match suspension that was imposed retrospectively after he elbowed Seamus Coleman during last month's 3-2 win over Everton.
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