A mainstay of the Sky Blues first-team at the time, the Burundi-born midfielder looked destined for bigger and better things, with the Magpies seemingly the perfect fit.
Three years on, however, and it’s a very different story.
Loaned out to Glasgow Rangers midway through last season, where he failed to find any game time, Bigirimana has so far made just 13 league appearances to date.
And any hope of a return to the first-team under Steve McClaren may have taken a significant hit after the midfielder was dismissed for Newcastle’s Under-21 team during a 6-4 defeat to Derby.
It had all started so well, too, with Bigirimana getting on a scoresheet in a game that was supposed to help him catch the Toon boss’s eye.
But after picking up two yellow cards, the second for a late, rash tackle, the ex-Coventry favourite was given his marching orders with Newcastle already well on their way to a defeat.
Now facing a suspension and already someway out of the first-team picture, Bigirimana may look to force through a loan move away from the club.
But after seemingly moving to Rangers while injured, it remains to be seen whether another club would take a gamble on him.