Ex-NUFC star admits he might have stayed if Steve Bruce was appointed before he left

Mo Diame has revealed that he would have thought twice about leaving Newcastle United had Steve Bruce arrived on Tyneside before he left for Qatar.

The Senegalese star enjoyed some of his best years under Bruce at Hull City, famously firing them to the Premier League with a stunning goal at Wembley in the 2016 play-off final vs Sheffield Wednesday.

Although the key reason behind his exit was believed to centre around the club only offering him a one-year deal when he wanted two, Diame admits that he would “loved” to have been reunited with his former boss.

Here’s what he told The Chronicle:

“I will be honest with you: I would have loved to have worked with Steve Bruce again because I had a good relationship with him and he’s been very nice with me as a manager,”.

“If you speak to most of the players, they will say the same thing because he really has a big heart and looks after his players like sons.

“I definitely would have had a lot of doubts about going if he had come earlier.

“I spent nice years with him at Hull City and I would have loved to have been playing for him again, but I made this decision and I have no regrets.”

18 months on from his release, I still feel like we haven’t replace big Mo.

His best days may have been behind him, with him going from a dynamic box-to-box midfielder to more of a defensive spoiler who broke up the play, but he gave us that physicality, power and presence that our engine room has lacked since.

You can read his in-depth interview with The Chronicle’s Ciaran Kelly here.

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About Olly Hawkins

As a Junior Magpie since birth and season ticket holder, I eat, sleep and breathe all things NUFC! Here at the blog, I aim to bring you news, views, match reports and transfer exclusives as and when I get them.

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