'Maybe I underestimated the expectation': Jamal Lewis candidly opens up on a 'rollercoaster' first season at Newcastle United

The left-back moved to St James’s Park from Norwich City last summer in a £15million deal though struggled for consistency during his debut campaign.

Lewis was a regular in Bruce’s starting XI before being dropped to the bench for the remaining 12 games of the season in place of Matt Ritchie.

“It was a bit of a rollercoaster,” Lewis told The Insight Pod as he reflected on his opening year on Tyneside. “Maybe I underestimated the expectation.

"At Norwich, in the Premier League if you lose, it’s like ‘cool, we’ll dust ourselves down and go again’. At Newcastle, it’s like ‘no, that’s not good enough’.

“It was just about handling the spotlight and the criticism. Obviously, there is a different style of manager, different style of play. I had to get used to that far from home.

“Norwich is only an hour and a half away from my home and Newcastle’s a lot more than that! It’s a lovely city but I haven’t been able to experience it too well during Covid.”

The 23-year-old felt he enjoyed a strong start to life at Newcastle – starting 11 of the first 12 games – before contracting Covid-19 along with a number of his teammates in November.

As a result, United’s away fixture at Aston Villa had to be re-arranged before Lewis returned to start at left-back during the 2-1 win at home to West Bromwich Albion.

Lewis said: “I had a good start to the season before I ended up contracting Covid. Personally, I come back too quickly.

“I tried to come back for the next fixture and I just wasn’t ready. I had no energy, I felt lethargic - I was feeling this for a good four to six weeks.

“It was only until I came out of that and thought ‘oh my goodness, how was I playing like that?’

“People that know me know the least you’ll get is energy. If I’m bombing up the pitch and I’m out of breath, there’s something wrong."

After recovering from Covid, the Northern Ireland international suffered with an injury problem.

“Then I had my hernia, so it was like another blow and another blow.

“Maybe if you’re playing at a Man City or Liverpool - a team that dominates possession and the game, maybe you can play at 10% down.

“When your team is performing mid-table or at the lower end of the table, your team needs you at 100%.

“During that time I thought ‘OK, I’ll play for the team’ but I wasn’t at the place where I needed to be to play at that level.

“That’s something I learned during the season - when I’m not feeling at least 90% then I need to let people know.

“It was tough for me personally, no one wants to be performing mediocre or below average, especially when your team isn’t performing as well so it’s like a double whammy."

Bruce’s men won just two of their 21 matches between December and the beginning of April before finishing the season strongly to retain their Premier League status.

Disappointingly for Lewis though, the left-back played just six minutes in total during the remaining dozen matches as United sealed a 12th place finish on 45 points.

Lewis said: “As a team collectively we had injuries and players coming back from Covid and we just went through a very sticky spell.

“It wasn’t enjoyable to be part of – you don’t want the fans to be unhappy like that.

“We ended up having a good start, a really bad middle and a good end.

“Unfortunately I wasn’t part of the end but I was on the bench ready for my opportunity if it was to come and unfortunately it didn’t.

“Sometimes you need to take a step back and analyse – I’ve done that and I’m ready to go.

“I know where I can be successful in this team and how I can be, so I just want to show that week in, week out.

“At the end of the day, I have to be appreciative of the opportunity. I’ve always been someone that dusts themselves down – I’m mentally strong.

“People will see that this year and in seasons to come that I’ll be an important player for Newcastle United "

Prior to his switch to the North East, Lewis had attracted interest from then-Premier League champions Liverpool.

Indeed, it was Lewis’ displays for the Canaries, despite their relegation, that captured the attention of a number of clubs.

However, once Newcastle tabled an official offer, Lewis says joining was a “no brainer”.

Now, as he prepares for his second season on Tyneside, Lewis is determined to play a key part in United’s success going forward.

He said: “When I heard Newcastle were interested, it was a no-brainer for me.

“It’s a top Premier League side and it’s a bit like me, it has so much potential and I just want to fulfill it with the club.

“I want to do well at the club and I want to be etched in history.

“I want to finish in the top half and kick on from there and make sure the club and the city enjoy the football and have a feel-good factor around the place.

“I want to be a cog in that system now.”

Lewis was speaking to The Insight Pod. You can listen to the podcast via YouTube, Spotify and Apple Podcast.

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