MOUSSA SISSOKO has become the first player to announce he wants to leave Newcastle United following the club’s relegation to the Championship last season.

The French midfielder claims to have told manager Rafael Benitez of his desire to leave St James’ Park, and has called on the Magpies hierarchy to allow him to move elsewhere despite his current contract not being due to expire until 2019.

Benitez has been assured he does not have to sell anyone unless he wants to, and having handed Sissoko the captain’s armband in the closing weeks of last season, the Spaniard had been hoping to build his team around the 26-year-old in the second tier.

However, speaking at Clairefontaine, France’s training base for Euro 2016, Sissoko has spelled out his determination to move this summer, citing his international ambitions as a key factor in his reluctance to drop down to the Championship.

“It’s flattering that a coach like him (Benitez), a great coach, wants to keep me,” said Sissoko, who started all bar one of Newcastle’s league games last season. “But I think he knows I have got to a level where playing in the Championship would be difficult for me.

“I must continue my development. I aspire to play for the biggest clubs in Europe, and continue to be in the France team.

“I think he understands. Today, if I play in the Championship, I can forget about the France team and many other things.

“I have already had a discussion with him, and my representatives will have a discussion with him too. I think he knows what I want, and where I want to go. So I hope there will be no problem for me to find happiness at another club.”

Sissoko joined Newcastle in a £2m move from Toulouse in January 2013, and has made 130 first-team appearances for the club, scoring 12 goals.

His stock has risen significantly during his time on Tyneside, and while he failed to hit top form on a number of occasions last season, he remains one of the most highly-rated members of the squad.

He has been linked with a number of clubs in the last couple of seasons, most notably Paris St Germain and Arsenal, and while Newcastle are yet to receive a formal approach for his services this summer, they are unlikely to be short of offers.

Benitez could opt to dig in his heels and insist Sissoko remains to honour his contract, although it is hard to see the benefit of retaining a player who has clearly decided he does not want to spend another season with Newcastle.

“I do not know what will happen, but I hope with all my heart (they will allow him to leave),” said Sissoko. “I arrived there three-and-a-half years ago, when Newcastle were in a difficult situation, and played to help them. As a team, we saved the club.

“I gave everything there for three years, so I hope that today, they will be smart enough to understand that to continue my development, I need to keep playing at the highest level.

“Hopefully, something will go through from another club. As I want to stay in the France team, I could not stay in the Championship. There will be discussions. I hope they will go the way I want – I want to go.”

Sissoko has long admitted he wants to play in the Champions League, and ideally, he would like to sign for one of the four English clubs to have qualified for next season’s competition.

Arsenal would be his preferred destination, although it remains to be seen whether Arsene Wenger’s pursuit of Jamie Vardy might make him less inclined to make a move for Sissoko.

“I would like to continue my career in England, at a club that plays in the Champions League, because I think the Premier League is the league that best fits my style of play,” said Sissoko, in an interview with Foot Mercato.

“It’s very flattering (to be linked with Arsenal). Arsenal is one of the best European clubs. To be followed by this kind of club, it proves (my) quality. It’s good to know. I hope I will soon have a chance to play for this club or a similar club

“Everyone knows, I have often said when I was young, my heart was with Arsenal because there were a lot of French players that were there. Thierry Henry, Robert Pires, Sylvain Wiltord, Patrick Vieira, who was my idol.

“There are discussions to be done. I just hope to find the best club for me, where I can develop myself as much as possible. I want to continue to progress, playing at a very high level, to continue playing for France. Being in Newcastle, it will be complicated I think.”

Sissoko expressed regret at Newcastle’s relegation last month, but claims to have enjoyed a very good relationship with Benitez, who was close to signing him when he was Liverpool manager.

“This is a coach who already knew me,” he said. “When I was at Toulouse, he wanted me at Liverpool. But I decided to stay in Toulouse because I was young and wanted to continue my apprenticeship there.

“When he arrived, we could talk together. Things have gone very well, but unfortunately it failed to keep us up. But he and I had a very good relationship.”