The 29-year-old admits he was unhappy with his Newcastle United performances last term.
Mo Diame has told The Shields Gazette that he was disappointed with his performances for Newcastle United last season.
The towering midfielder struggled to exert the influence which was expected of him following a £5 million switch from Hull City 12 months ago.
Newcastle still won the Championship and with it a place back in the Premier League following one season in the second tier.
Diame, who only managed three league goals in 37 outings, helped Hull win promotion to the top flight via the playoffs last year, scoring 10 that season – including one in the final – but the 29-year-old believes that successive years in the rough and tumble of the Championship took its toll.
“Personally, though, I am a little bit disappointed,” he told The Shields Gazette.
“I didn’t play the way I wanted to. I wanted to make the fans happy, but my body just wasn’t ready for two consecutive seasons in the Championship.”
It remains to be seen whether the former West Ham United man has done enough to earn a spot in Rafael Benitez’s squad next term. He was not a pivotal member of the team last season and therefore the Spanish boss may look to move him on.
He is certainly an asset, and previous spells in the Premier League prove as much, but time will tell whether Benitez feels the same.
Newcastle United’s Mohamed Diame celebrates scoring their first goal
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