OPINION
Mo Diame’s contract situation at Newcastle United is an unusual one.
The Senegalese international will be rewarded with a new contract at the club if he makes 25 starts for the club this season, as reported by the Chronicle.
He already has 22, but with a plethora of midfield options to choose from, it’s not unreasonable to think that he might struggle to make the starting XI with same regularity that he did prior to the injury absence that has seen him sidelined for a considerable amount of time.
The 31-year-old is evidently a significant part of Rafa Benitez’s squad, but with the current form of other players, and with the Magpies needing to win as many games as possible to avoid the dreaded drop, it’s easy to envisage a situation whereby Diame misses out on his appearance quota.
With Newcastle out of the FA Cup, the midfielder basically has 12 matches to secure himself a new deal, and Saturday’s relegation clash with Huddersfield Town could be the ideal opportunity for him to make a start.
The Terriers are in awful form, securing one point from the last 39 available, and while that does not mean that they will be a walkover, if there was one game that, as a manager, you were willing to field a returning player for the sake of giving him a start, you would definitely choose Huddersfield.
He may not be a firm favourite, but Diame is clearly part of Benitez’s plans, and Saturday would be a perfect opportunity for the midfielder to be rewarded for his service.