QPR sent clear transfer message by Premier League midfielder

Newcastle United midfielder Isaac Hayden has admitted he would 'love' to stay at QPR after his loan expires this summer, even if it meant continuing to earn a significantly lower wage than his pay pack on Tyneside.

The 29-year-old joined the Rs on Deadline Day in the January window having had a loan spell at Standard Liege over the first half of the season cut short. Hayden has featured in every Championship match since arriving at Loftus Road, playing a key role in continuing Marti Cifuentes' fight for second-division survival.

The former Arsenal man is due to return to St James' Park at the end of the season, having only signed a short-term loan contract with QPR. It has been reported that Hayden has been told he has no future under Eddie Howe at Newcastle United, making a potential QPR summer move seem a possibility.

Hayden has now responded to questions about his future and made it crystal clear that he would like the chance to come back to West London. As picked up by NewcastleWorld, he told The Sun: “It's a situation where myself and the club [Newcastle] will have to sit down in the summer and discuss what they want to do.

“I had to take a pay-cut to go to QPR, which I was happy to do for the last few months of the season, to get games. But it’ll be back to square one in the summer but hopefully I can help keep QPR up and would love to stay here if possible.”

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Hayden moved to Newcastle United in 2016, when he was signed by Rafa Benitez, and helped the club to win the Championship title. He has made 171 appearances for the Magpies and signed a long-term contract extension in 2020.

Speaking on his role under Eddie Howe, Hayden said: “Eddie’s very intense. If you don't come in to work or training 100 per cent switched on, then ready to put in 110 per cent, you'll get found wanting with him. He’s honest and fair. He’ll tell you what he thinks, whether you like it or not.

“I played a few games for him before I got injured but then things change. There are no hard feelings. I told him, ‘It’s a shame I didn’t get a chance to work with you for a couple of years before because I’d have developed a lot more. He’d stimulate you mentally and before my injury he had me in my best-ever physical shape.”