Hatem Ben Arfa is a maverick and needs managing correctly... Steve Bruce can use his experience of captaining Eric Cantona to get the best out of him

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‘If you want to pay money, that’s what you want to see.’ Who said that less than a year ago about Hatem Ben Arfa?

You guessed it right – Alan Pardew.

It was after a sensational performance I had witnessed from the Frenchman at Villa Park where he scored one and set up the winner in a 2-1 victory for Newcastle United. Ben Arfa was simply brilliant that day, he was a joy to watch.

The criticism was that he didn’t do it consistently enough, yet the week before that virtuoso Villa performance Ben Arfa has curled in a brilliant winner against Fulham.

VIDEO Scroll down for Ben Arfa's Tupac tribute 

Maverick: Hatem Ben Arfa left Newcastle and joined Hull on deadline day

I’ve lived and worked in Newcastle, and I regularly covered games at St James’ Park. I’m well aware the fans on Tyneside love their No 9s, but they also love a flair player and Ben Arfa is a special talent.

But he’s a player who needs managing correctly, and I think it’s a shame for Pardew that he has seemingly waved the white flag with such a good player.

Having followed Pardew’s managerial career closely, I know he has sometimes expressed disappointment that he doesn’t get the credit he feels he deserves.

Admitting defeat: Alan Pardew has waved the white flag with Ben Arfa

I can understand where he is coming from. But managing a player like Ben Arfa and getting the best out of him would separate Pardew from some of the rest, and give people a reason to look at him in a different light.

But Pardew has held his hands up and admitted defeat – he cannot ‘manage a maverick.’ Kevin Keegan did it with David Ginola, Sir Alex Ferguson with Eric Cantona, but Pardew has separated himself from the chance of getting anywhere near that kind of greatness by fundamentally refusing to work with Ben Arfa.

Special talent: Ben Arfa proved to be a very special player at times for Newcastle 

It could be a special signing for Hull City. And Steve Bruce can draw on his experience with the man who he describes as the ‘hurricane’, Cantona. Bruce was the Frenchman’s captain at Manchester United, the Hull boss was a leader in the dressing room the night of Cantona’s kung fu kick at Selhurst Park in 1995.

Given all his experience of Cantona, if Bruce can’t get the best out of Ben Arfa then the player will have to take a long hard look at himself.

But if Bruce gets Ben Arfa doing special things on the pitch, Pardew will be left to face more criticism from the demanding Geordie faithful. This time it will be totally justified.

Been there before: Steve Bruce was Eric Cantona's captain at Manchester United and got the best out of him