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Wey Aye the Toon is Areet for Whitley Beye


smoggeordie
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HABIB BEYE really is talking the talk at Newcastle.

 

Beye wasted no time falling in love with the Toon after his arrival from Marseille in August 2007.

 

And the full-back — nicknamed Whitley Beye by team-mates after the nearby seaside town — has been pretty quick at picking up the Geordie lingo, too.

 

The idea of a French-speaking Senegal international giving it plenty of ‘Alreet, pet’ and ‘Why aye man’ may seem strange.

 

But thanks to legendary Sky Sports darts commentator and Newcastle nut Sid Waddell, Beye is just pretty canny reet now. (That’s ‘He is doing fine’ for readers south of the Tyne.)

 

Sid’s book on how to speak Geordie, Taak of the Toon, has become a big hit in the Beye household.

 

Beye, 31, said: “I started speaking Geordie with Neil the kitman so someone at the club gave me Sid’s book to learn some more.

 

“I used to come to training when I first arrived and all the guys who work there would say ‘Why aye man’ and I didn’t have a clue what they were saying.

 

“I didn’t know what it was until someone said it was ‘Hello’ in Geordie. Now every morning I come in and say ‘Why aye man, how are you, canny lad?’

 

“They love it. Everybody thinks it is very funny to hear a French speaker talk Geordie, but I like learning all about the culture and the different language.

 

“I never hear normal English words like ‘Good morning’. It is always ‘Why aye man’, ‘Canny lad’ and ‘Alreet pet’.

 

“These words are brilliant and I use them if I’m down the pub or in a restaurant.

 

“When I first heard someone saying ‘pet’ it was strange. A pet is a dog or cat where I come from, so it was funny hearing someone say it to a woman.

 

“When I go back to France or Senegal perhaps I will start speaking Geordie. My dad came over a few weeks ago and I said ‘Why aye man’ to him.

 

“He said ‘What is that? Is it English?’ I said ‘No, it is Geordie, man’.”

 

New Toon boss Joe Kinnear — a Dublin-born Londoner — complained that communication was a big problem in Newcastle’s multi-lingual dressing room.

 

But Beye reckons all his foreign pals have copied him and started speaking Geordie. He added: “Now the Spanish guys have started speaking like me. People are speaking French, Spanish, English.

 

“When Neil the kitman comes into the dressing room he shouts out ‘English’ — and everyone starts shouting in Geordie.”

 

Beye, who cost £2million from Ligue 1 side Marseille, is a rare thing at St James’ Park — a Sam Allardyce signing who is actually worth the money.

 

And the Senegal international has thrown himself firmly into the North East way of life.

 

He said: “I love the whole culture. I’ve had fish and chips in Tynemouth and enjoy finding out more about the area.

 

“When you are a footballer all you see is the training ground and stadium, but you must try and get to know what is going on around you.

 

"Marseille is very different to Newcastle. There you have the sun on your back for 11 months — here we have the wind for 11 months.

 

“But I like it. Before I came to Newcastle I always thought I wouldn’t like to play in the North of England. Now, though, I am happy.

Friendly

 

“The people are so friendly to me. Learning about a new culture has really helped me settle. I can relate to Geordies.

 

“I don’t think I will ever get it 100 per cent, but I know plenty of words already!”

 

Newcastle start the day in 17th spot and Kinnear could be lost for words if his men are back in the bottom three after Aston Villa’s visit on Monday night.

 

The Magpies have been boosted by Tuesday’s 2-1 win over West Brom and Beye said: “If we beat Villa it will be a great step.

 

“It has been tough for everyone but we are showing signs of improvement.

 

“The club went through a hard time when Kevin Keegan left. Everybody liked him. But Joe is here now, he has settled us down and we are improving all the time.

 

“Joe speaks his own language too! Everybody has their language. Everybody is different and you must go along with that.

 

“I still think we can get into the Premier League’s top 10 this season.”

 

And that, as the Toon Army and Beye would say, would be ‘Champion!’

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“When I first heard someone saying ‘pet’ it was strange. A pet is a dog or cat where I come from, so it was funny hearing someone say it to a woman.

 

:icon_lol:

 

Class article, top footballer and top bloke :)

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My ITK has said that the "someone" was MvB whilst he was up in Newcastle getting an extra 5 million put onto the Milner deal. Cracking bloke

 

HABIB BEYE really is talking the talk at Newcastle.

 

 

Beye, 31, said: “I started speaking Geordie with Neil the kitman so someone at the club gave me Sid’s book to learn some more.

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