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Malick Thiaw reveals one thing that ‘surprised’ him about Newcastle United

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Newcastle United supporters have shown their love to Malick Thiaw by creating a unique terrace chant.

Malick Thiaw has admitted he was blown away by his unique crowd chant that debuted at Union Saint-Gilloise last month.

Newcastle United supporters are renowned for constructing bespoke hymns for their on-field heroes. To the tune of Italian folk song Bella Ciao, their latest terrace chant goes: “Oh na na na na, oh na na na na, Malick Thiaw, Malick Thiaw, Malick, Thiaw! Thiaw! Thiaw! Came from Milano, to play with Sandro, and he loves the f----- Toon.”

The German earned his stripes from the terraces less than two months after arriving for £30million from AC Milan. Thiaw has been a rare highlight in what has otherwise been an underwhelming start to the Premier League campaign.

‘Outstanding’ - Malick Thiaw

When asked about the Newcastle chant by German media while on international duty, Thiaw said: "I know the lyrics - they're outstanding. I've never had a song like that in my career. I was surprised when I first heard it. My teammates then told me - without downplaying it - that it's common in England.

"Nevertheless, it was wonderful for me. I first heard the song at an away game when I was standing in front of the fans. I'll never forget that moment."

Malick Thiaw on Newcastle United decision

Thiaw opened up on Eddie Howe being key behind making the “right decision” to join Newcastle. He added: “There was already a discussion (with Newcastle United) in the spring, but this summer it became much more concrete than in previous years.

“I also had talks with Eddie Howe, in which he explained his plans for me and where he saw me playing. Based on that, I decided on Newcastle. I think it was the right decision.”

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‘He’s been excellent’ - Eddie Howe

Howe hailed Thiaw’s immediate impact when speaking to reporters last month. He said: “He’s a prospect for the future but also the here and now. He’s settled in really well. I think he’s built good friendships, especially with Nick (Woltemade).

“You can see Malick and Nick have built up that strong relationship. It’s important that you have the strength of those relationships around from day to day. On the pitch, I think he’s been excellent.

“Very calm, quite quiet in his work but you can see on the pitch how aggressive he is and how much he wants to win and help the team. He’s distributed the ball really well. He’s athletic.”

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