“Last year, when he wasn’t playing, there was something missing from the team.
Coloccini was a key figure in the Magpies’ surge to fifth place in the Premier League just three seasons after relegation.
Now Pardew wants him to knit together a new rearguard in front of keeper Tim Krul, with Mathieu Debuchy, Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa and Davide Santon still finding their feet.