In preparation for his second departure from Newcastle United this summer, Isaac Hayden has been training hard in the Middle East.
The 29-year-old was benched by head coach Eddie Howe in December 2021, and he hasn’t played for the Magpies since. Prior to stints at Standard Liege and Queens Park Rangers the previous season, he played on loan at Norwich City during the 2022–2023 season.
For the preseason, most of Howe’s first team players will be back for the next two weeks, but Hayden, like last year, will be practicing away from the team’s Benton training field while his transfer to another club is finalized. Newcastle may decide to waive any prospective transfer fees, approve another loan, or mutually terminate the player’s contract, which doesn’t expire until 2026. He is open to rejoining QPR, but the conditions need to be met. The former Arsenal player visited Aspetar, a sports medical and orthopaedic institution in Doha, Qatar, and is eager to demonstrate his off-season commitment.
Hayden is not the only player in a similar scenario; Ryan Fraser and Jamal Lewis have both been warned they have no future on Tyneside.
Lewis is searching for a new team after Watford declined their offer to sign the left-back on a permanent basis, while Fraser has decided to rejoin Southampton after helping them earn promotion back to the Premier League on their first try.
Both players signed their contracts in 2020, and they are currently in the last year of their deals.
Jeff Hendrick played the final 2.5 years of his contract with Queens Park Rangers, Reading, and Sheffield Wednesday before being released by Newcastle on Monday. Paul Dummett and Mat Ritchie, a longtime team, were also let go.