IRELAND MIDFIELDER JEFF Hendrick admits it’s a “strong possibility” that he won’t play another game for Newcastle United, in spite of the fact he has another two years left on his contract with the club.
Hendrick’s fall from favour at Newcastle pre-dates the club’s Saudi takeover: he was a regular under Steve Bruce until a red card against Southampton in February 2021, at which point his suspension bled into exclusion. Having started six of Newcastle’s seven league games prior to that sending off, Hendrick started just one of the remaining 15 matches and then made just one start in the first half of last season. When it became clear he wasn’t in Eddie Howe’s plans, Hendrick took a loan move to QPR for regular gametime.
That loan spell is up and he will report back to Newcastle for pre-season training at the start of July, but Hendrick admits he may not remain at the club.
“I have two years left at Newcastle”, he told journalists from the Irish team hotel in Yerevan, ahead of tomorrow’s Nations League meeting with Armenia. “For me, I’m ready to go back on 1 July and start training and if I need to go and get games, I will do that. It’s something I want to do, I always want to play games and I’ll wait and see.”
Hendrick spoke to Howe at the end of the season, who told him to report for pre-season.
“I don’t know if it will be a fresh start. Newcastle have done really well and brought some good players in and I can admit their midfield is very strong with the additions in January. I’m not the club, I’m not doing the buying or whatever, but I’d imagine they will strengthen the whole squad again in the summer. For me it’s about being realistic and being prepared that I might need to go somewhere else for games.”
Asked if he may have already played his last game for the club, Hendrick replied, “Yeah, I’d say it’s a possibility. Things can change, football is crazy like that, but it’s a strong possibility, we’ll have to wait and see.”
The fact he spent the latter half of last season at QPR proves he is unafraid of dropping out of the Premier League for regular minutes.
“I went in January to the Championship and it doesn’t bother me, I have played in the Premier League for five-and-a-half years. I have enjoyed my time, had some real ups and downs but the main thing is going to the right team for me, where I can play my best.”
The QPR move began well but was curtailed by injury: Hendrick tweaked a hamstring muscle in Ireland’s friendly draw with Belgium that ruled him out of most of the season’s run-in. He was back in time for the penultimate game, but missed the last day because of the birth of his son.
The purpose of seeking regular gametime is primarily to keep himself in the international reckoning. While the rhythm of international camps of September, October, and November could compensate for his being sidelined at Newcastle in the first half of the season, he couldn’t accept it for much longer.
“It was from the November to January [transfer] window where I didn’t play for two and a half months, so I knew I needed to go and play games. I knew I couldn’t go from November to March without getting enough game time: it would have been difficult for the manager here to justify playing me.”
Listen to Stephen Kenny talk, however, and it strikes you that Hendrick will always be in contention to play, regardless of his club status.
“Normally you wouldn’t sort of play them, but such is his commitment to his physical regime”, waxed Kenny. “His fitness levels are incredible and he pushes himself and the way he lives, he’s a strict vegan. He’s one that very few people could do it, not play and then come in and play.”
The Irish manager also praised Hendrick’s passing range, accentuating an “extraordinary” arcing, cross-field pass he played to Jason Knight in the friendly against Belgium. Knight, unfortunately, couldn’t score to make the pass even more memorable.
“Coming in, we had to decide really what type of player is Jeff Hendrick. So we focused on his creative passing, the importance of his forward passing and the positions he takes up and then to look forward.
“Maybe it was underutilised for a long time but he has a really expansive range of passing. These are things we didn’t always associate with Jeff, a high energy player, box to box who covers ground and so forth which he does. Those are good things and important things in midfield at this level. He’s got great quality and it’s great to see him utilise it.”
Kenny isn’t looking for plaudits when he’s asked about Hendrick’s fine form at international level.
“I wouldn’t claim any great credit for it, he himself commits to an extraordinary fitness and lifestyle.
“He hires his own separate people outside the club and does relentless stuff. He commits to that himself. That’s nothing to do with me. The Newcastle thing, because the first season didn’t go well, when he was flying with us he was probably paying the price for the previous season because he didn’t really get an opportunity to have a game.
“I think the environment [with Ireland], and tactically, the way the team plays and what’s expected of him, I think he’s flourished, but that’s down to himself really. He’s opened his eyes and just realised the possibilities that exist on the pitch when we’ve got two flying wing-backs and three forwards.”
Hendrick has shaken off that hamstring complaint and confirmed he is fit to play Armenia tomorrow night, declaring himself fully fit just as he bashed his knee off the table around which we were sitting. It didn’t leave any lasting damage.
“I am confident”, he says when asked about the international team. “I have performed really well and I want to keep performing at that level and help the team in any way I can.”
