Newcastle flop makes damning claims about the Mike Ashley era - "They blocked me"

Just over a year since he left the club, ex-Newcastle midfielder Henri Saivet has revealed that Mike Ashley's Newcastle 'lacked professionalism' in a damning interview with So Foot.

The now 31-year-old signed a five-and-a-half-year deal with the Magpies back in 2016 for a fee of around £5million, arriving from Ligue 1 outfit Bordeaux.

In over half a decade, the midfielder made just five Premier League appearances and was sent out on loan three times, costing the club £16m in transfer fees and wages during that time.

Despite his terrific efforts with Senegal in the 2019 AFCON tournament where he was key in getting his team to the final, Saivet claimed that Newcastle 'didn't even follow my performances' and he was left to rot in the reserves upon his return.

While disappointing to hear, it will come as no surprise to supporters who were fully aware that the club was rotten to the core under Ashley's 14-year tenure and is only now beginning to heel.

In the interview, here's what Saivet - currently in Ligue 2 with Pau - had to say:

“They don’t respect the AFCON, it’s that simple. When I returned to Newcastle after the lost final against Algeria, they admitted they didn’t even follow my performances, even though I had two years left on my contract.

"It’s quite simply a lack of professionalism.

“Things happened that I didn’t control. They blocked me so I couldn’t leave. Newcastle were asking for indecent future sale percentages.

"They refused a lot of offers even though I wasn’t playing. Even for my loans, I had to force an exit. Even today, it annoys me because I don’t have an answer.”

Regardless of talent or cost to the club, the way Saivet and likely many others - Jonas Gutierrez comes to mind - were dealt with was totally unprofessional, with these new claims offering a horrifying insight into the way the club was run at the time.