Mo Diame is unlikely to sign a contract extension with Newcastle United, according to the Chronicle journalist Lee Ryder.
The Senegalese international needs to start three more matches to trigger an automatic year long extension to his stay on Tyneside, but Ryder believes that he won’t put pen to paper on a new deal otherwise.
During a Q&A on the Chronicle (13.43), when asked if Diame would sign, he said: “As it stands, I’m not getting that feeling.
“It is actually not a case of him signing the one-year extension that is one the table. It will be triggered automatically if he makes what we believe is three more starts.
“Diame wants two more years but Newcastle don’t want to give him that. With eight games left we’ll soon know whether Diame is staying here.”
OPINION
This doesn’t look good for Diame. The main issue seems to be that Diame wants two years but the club are only willing to give him one. That discrepancy could be the detail that ultimately ends his Newcastle career. Yes, the club’s hands are tied if he starts three more matches, but if he doesn’t, and there’s definitely no saying that he will, then Mike Ashley and his famously hardline negotiation tactics could spell trouble for the midfielder. Diame has struggled to force his way into the side this year, predominantly because of injury, but now that he is fully fit, there will be plenty of suitors lining up to offer him a home if he is shown the exit at St. James’ Park. There would be a fair few supporters, and perhaps even Rafa Benitez, who would be against that departure, but unless he is willing to compromise and lower his expectations, he could be forced out.
