Newcastle United midfielder Mohamed Diame is set to earn a fresh contract with the club at some point this season, according to the Chronicle.
The regional newspaper report that the Senegal international has a behind-the-scenes agreement in place with the club which will trigger a new deal once he makes a certain amount of appearances.
The Chronicle claim that the 31-year-old’s future is in his own hands, but with the midfielder having played every Premier League game so far this season, an extension is highly likely.
Diame’s current deal runs out at the end of the season.
OPINION
This is a clever arrangement from the club which motivates Diame to work hard and make enough appearances to trigger that contract extension. The Senegal international is clearly already well on the way to earning that new deal, having been an ever-present in their Premier League starting XI so far this season. The one worry for Diame may be the resurgence of Ki Sung-yueng over the weekend, with the South Korea international changing the game when he was introduced for the injured Jonjo Shelvey. Obviously Diame will start alongside Ki until Shelvey is fit again, but once the England international returns, there will be a question to be answered over Diame’s place in the side. What the 31-year-old does bring is strength and power in the midfield, something which a partnership of Shelvey and Ki would seriously lack. Despite that, you would think it likely that Diame will get that new deal, and that is a positive thing for the club in the long run.