NEWCASTLE, ENGLAND // The France winger Hatem Ben Arfa has turned his season-long loan to Premier League club Newcastle United into a permanent deal.
Newcastle announced today that the 23-year-old has signed a contract through to June 2015 after it agreed an undisclosed fee with Marseille.
He has only managed to make four appearances for the club having been out of action since October when he broke his left leg in a challenge with Manchester City midfielder Nigel de Jong.
Alan Pardew, who took charge of Newcastle last month, said that "one of my priorities was to secure Hatem on a permanent deal".
He added that "the last thing I wanted was for us to lose him when his loan ended, so we are really pleased to have agreed that deal".
