‘I could have stayed’: 27-year-old explains why he had to leave Newcastle

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Isaac Hayden insists he never wanted to become a ‘bit-part player’ at Newcastle United before leaving the Premier League high-flyers for Championship challengers Norwich City over the summer, speaking to The Athletic.

During Saturday’s dramatic 2-2 draw with fellow promotion-pushers Sheffield United, Hayden started a league game for the first time since December 2021.

And a long-running knee problem, coupled with his omission from Eddie Howe’s 25-man Premier League squad for the second half of last term, had Hayden chomping at the bit when Norwich came calling, offering one of Newcastle’s longest-serving players a fresh challenge and the prospect of regular first-team football.

Isaac Hayden on loan at Norwich City from Newcastle United

“It didn’t end at Newcastle how I wanted it to,” admits Hayden, who joined from Arsenal for £2.6 million six years ago. “I was injured in March 2021, missed the rest of that season. Came back. Played three months, then missed the rest of that season; about five months.

“Then I came here and wanted to play straight away, and missed another three months. So I’ve not really had any sort of run of football for 18 months.

“I could have easily stayed at Newcastle and been a bit-part player, not played and sat there collecting my money. No one would have batted an eyelid. But I’m not that type of person.”

Hayden, who admitted to being ‘bitterly disappointed’ after falling out of Howe’s plans at St James’ Park, joined Norwich on loan in June. The Canaries will make his stay permanent should they secure yet another promotion out of England’s second tier.

The 27-year-old may be wishing things had turned out differently at Newcastle but any bitterness towards Howe has turned to admiration in the meantime.

“The manager is really, really good there,” Hayden adds. “He has called me probably every couple of weeks, just to see how I am and how I’m getting on. He talks about the lads back there and how they’re getting on too.

“I have nothing but great things to say about him as a person. He’s a top-level coach; probably the best I’ve had in terms of man-management.

“I was there (at Newcastle) for six years and a lot of us grew up with that club; through the Championship and into the Premier League. It got to a point where they wanted to move on and the injuries for me probably came at the wrong time.”