Newcastle must sell Toon flop who Rafa thought had “fantastic potential”

Newcastle United are being frustrated by a lack of synergy that is hampering Eddie Howe’s side. There’s no bite in the Magpies’ attack and little inspiration in the build-up anyway.

New heights have been reached in the Premier League across recent years, but the Champions League qualification of 2022/23 looks a long distance away, even if a squad of talented parts has been fashioned.

It’s clear that moves need to be made in the transfer market, but, moreover, Howe must ensure that the remaining bits of flotsam are shipped off.

The St. James’ Park deadweight

Newcastle haven’t quite stagnated but it’s patent that without investment, those at the top of the English ladder will not be surpassed.

For example, the Magpies reportedly have a vested interest in Brentford forward Bryan Mbeumo, who is dangerous centrally and out wide but will perhaps need to offload Miguel Almiron, as they are allegedly prepared to do, to facilitate such an ambitious winter venture.

Kieran Trippier, aged 34, is also available for transfer this January, with the right-back’s reduced role not matching up with his hefty £120k-per-week contract.

There are further fringe players who need selling, but Isaac Hayden should be right at the top of that list, for he is out on the margins with little chance of returning to first-team action.

Howe must surely sell Isaac Hayden

Last season, Hayden sat in the shadows for Newcastle before moving to Queens Park Rangers in the Championship in January 2024 in a short-term loan deal, starting 12 matches.

While the English midfielder featured prominently throughout the opening terms of his Toon career, his influence quickly petered out and he has since been a non-entity, with pundit Noel Whelan saying in 2022 that Hayden, Dwight Gayle and Ciaran Clark had “served their purpose” at St. James’ Park.

His impact has indeed been negligible since PIF arrived at the club, and lifted the Magpies back up.

Indeed, though former boss Rafa Benitez once noted that he was a prospect with “fantastic potential” following his £2.5m transfer from Arsenal way back when, it’s hard to argue that he’s been anything other than a flop over the past four years.

Still the 29-year-old remains. It’s questionable that he was rewarded with a new six-year contract in 2020 despite spinning away from the spotlight, having actually only started four Premier League matches since that point.

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He’s not the highest earner in Newcastle’s squad by half, but Hayden still takes home a neat wage at £50k per week, and PIF must ensure that this sizeable weekly drainage is plugged by his sale next summer.

Further to the point, he’s taking up valuable space in Howe’s broader squad that could perhaps be provided to a younger, more robust midfielder, capable of playing a significant part in the years to come.

Hayden is in the penultimate year of his contract, and thus could still fetch a small figure in 2025. Howe needs to get it done. Causality determines that a chain of events could be set in motion, and perhaps a significant upgrade could alight on Tyneside thereafter.

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