Wantaway Newcastle United player set for rare appearance after injury U-turn decision

Hayden played for Newcastle Under-21s in the National League Cup last month but hasn’t featured for the first team in almost three years. He remains contracted at St James’ Park until 2026 and has spent the past two seasons out on loan at Norwich City, Standard Liege and Queens Park Rangers respectively.

The 29-year-old has been omitted from The Magpies’ 25-man Premier League squad and has been training away from the first team. Newcastle are looking to reach an agreement to allow Hayden to leave the club.

In the meantime, Hayden has switched his international allegiance from England to Jamaica, a nation he qualifies to play for through his father.

Now he is set to make his international debut for The Reggae Boyz tonight (1am kick-off GMT) in the CONCACAF Nations League quarter-final against the United States before a return fixture next Tuesday (1am kick-off GMT).

Speaking to the media ahead of the match, Hayden said: “Fantastic to be here, I have been watching a lot of the games.

“I've been in contact with the coach [Steve McClaren] now for a little while, obviously talking about things and how I can help the team. If people have watched me play, they'll know I'm a highly committed player, defensively probably stronger than going forward.

“I think creating that balance between attack and defence is my best attribute. Making sure defensively we're as solid as possible which gives the attacking players the opportunity to do the damage.”

Hayden’s last appearance for Newcastle came in a 4-0 defeat to Manchester City in December 2021, since then he has struggled with various injury issues that have ultimately seen him frozen out of the first-team set-up. A knee injury picked up almost three years ago ended Hayden’s 2021-22 season early and had a knock-on impact on his loan spell at Norwich.

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As he was focused on club football and his return to fitness, Hayden turned down a previous opportunity to represent Jamaica.

“It's been a long time coming and it's something that I'd spoken to the previous coach [Heimir Hallgrímsson] about,” Hayden added. “I didn't feel it was quite ready for me because I had a couple of bad injuries a couple of years ago so international football at that stage was not really something that I thought was possible.

“Now I'm over the injuries, I'm as match fit as I can be considering the game time that I've had so far. I feel ready and feel good to contribute.” 

Former England and Newcastle manager Steve McClaren was appointed as Jamaica’s new manager after leaving Manchester United. He has been tasked with helping the Caribbean nation qualify for the 2026 FIFA World Cup that will be hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico.

“I've known Isaac for many years, tremendous talent,” McClaren said. “I thought his move to Newcastle was an excellent move for him, which it was initially. But unfortunately, as with all footballers, when you get injuries, it can curtail the momentum in your career and stall it a bit - that's what has happened.

“[Jamaica] is a different experience, a unique experience but one where our target is qualification for the World Cup and to play in a World Cup must be a dream for every player.”