Newcastle United have signed Ghanaian winger Christian Atsu on a season-long loan deal from Chelsea, with an option to make the move permanent next summer.

The 24-year-old has yet to make a league appearance for the Blues since moving to Stamford Bridge from Porto three years ago and has instead been shipped out on loan four times, including stints at Everton and Bournemouth.

"I'm very happy to be at Newcastle," Atsu told the Magpies' official website. "It's a very big club. They have good facilities and I think Newcastle have one of the best coaches in the world.

"St James' Park is a fantastic stadium with 50,000 fans; the fans here really love football so much and I can't wait to play at this stadium in front of the fans."

Manager Rafael Benitez added: "I agreed with our fans that we needed to bring in another winger, so I am very happy to welcome Christian to the club.

"He has good ability and pace in the wide areas and also has good experience of English football. He has a different style of play to the other players we have at the moment and that will be important for the squad."

Atsu becomes Benitez's 12th signing of the summer as the club look to bounce back to the Premier League at the first opportunity.