Newcastle ships Florian Thauvin back to Marseille on loan

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Florian Thauvin's underwhelming debut season in the Premier League is over.

Newcastle announced Sunday that the Frenchman, who made a mere three league starts for the Magpies after joining the club from Marseille last summer, is heading back to the Ligue 1 side on loan for the remainder of the campaign.

Manager Steve McClaren dubbed the winger "one of the best young players in Europe" back in August, but Thauvin saw his prospects of earning first-team football at Newcastle diminish further when the club signed Andros Townsend on Wednesday.

That move, combined with Thauvin's lack of minutes throughout the year, has pushed the 23-year-old back to the Stade Velodrome.