As the world watched Moussa Sissoko put on a Man of the Match display for France in the Euro 2016 final against Portugal, Newcastle fans were all asking themselves the same thing – where was this during the season?

His performances at the European Championship have shown exactly what Sissoko is capable of. His power, pace, and deadliness on the counter was there for all to see.

Seeing a player perform so well for his national side usually brings happiness to the supporters of the player’s club.

Sadly for Sissoko, this was not the case. Instead of making Newcastle supporters happy, he infuriated them.

His almost routine come-and-get-me pleas to Champions League clubs, inconsistent performances, and overall lack of heart over the last few years all has played a part in creating a frosty relationship between Sissoko and the Toon faithful.

Now with the season over and him having played a big part in the club’s relegation, he has once again spoken of his desire to leave.

I completely understand the majority of Newcastle fans’ anger and frustration. At first, I felt the exact same way.

However, after having a longer think about it and putting my frustration with Sissoko to the side, I realised his good performances at Euro 2016 have created a win-win situation for Rafa Benitez and everybody associated with the club.

If Benitez does decide to sell him, the Frenchman’s recent performances for his national side have just added £10m or so to his price tag. If a club does decide to pay in excess of £25m for Sissoko’s services, Benitez can use those funds to add two, three, or possibly even four quality players to the squad.

Rafa has already shown he’s capable of luring Champions League calibre players to Tyneside with the recent addition of Jesús Gámez. A couple more of those would do no damage whatsoever in this year’s promotion push.

If Benitez does decide to keep him, though, that also can be seen as a positive.

His recent performances for France have shown exactly why the Spaniard  is so keen to keep Sissoko at the club. The former  Toulouse player has shown that, on his day, he is a player capable of strutting his stuff in the Champions League.

If Benitez can get those types of performances from him on a consistent basis in the Championship, he would be a real force and arguably the best player in the entire league.

However, Rafa will not keep a player if he feels it will negatively impact the squad, so if he stays, it’s because the manager believes he’s willing to give the club another season without any tantrums.

Having a fully motivated Sissoko next season would be a big plus, there’s no doubt about that.

No matter what happens with Sissoko, one thing is for sure – it will be positive for Newcastle United.