The key is to avoid players weaknesses. Pardew seems to try and exploit them for some strange reason. Tiote is top notch at breaking play up, no doubt, and he's hard as nails. Don't be asking him to do anything technical though, it's just stupid. Playing him and Perch in the middle was so pathetic that Cabaye was trying to link defense to defensive midfield - or 'the DDM' as I have coined.
edit: to be fair though, when the only outlets are a wildly out of position Sissoko or... Jonas, well, there's not much you can do.