• Christian Atsu has announced that he has left Newcastle after five years

• The winger joined Newcastle from Chelsea after impressing on loan

• He has thanked the fans and his teammates for their support throughout his stay at the club

After almost five years at the St James’ Park, Ghanaian winger Christian Atsu has left English Premier League side Newcastle United.

The 29-year-old joined Newcastle from Chelsea permanently in 2017 after impressing on loan in the 2015/2016 season.

After enjoying his first three years at the clubs, Atsu has found opportunities hard to come by under coach Steve Bruce.

He was left out of their Premier League squad for the first half of the 2020/2021 season but was included in January.

He however didn't play in the league and was confined to a handful of minutes in the cup games.

With his contract running out, Atsu has taken to social media to announce his departure from the club.

He thanked the fans and his teammates and also promised to remain part of the ‘Newcastle family.'

"When I arrived in Newcastle almost 5 years ago, I was made to feel welcome from the start..by everyone at the club and especially by the fans. I grew to love the city and my young family feel very at home here. Sadly, the time has now come for me to leave the club, so I just wanted to say a big thank you to everyone who is part of the Newcastle Utd family.

“Thank you to the Toon Army fans, a lot of whom I’ve met around the city. I will never forget my time in the North East and for sure I will follow the results every week. Thank you my geordie staff, players & fans, it’s been a pleasure!”.

Atsu is now a free agent and allowed to join any club of his choice.