Joining Newcastle on a free transfer in 2011, Mehdi Abeid spent four years at St James’ Park, only making 21 first-team appearances for the Geordies, including a man of the match performance in a 1-0 win over Liverpool.
Leaving in 2015 for Panathinaikos, the 24-year-old midfielder is now enjoying a relatively successful season at Dijon, scoring three goals and assisting teammates twice in 21 appearances.
Interviewed by France Football this week, the former Magpie recalled some of his time in the north of England, revealing he turned down opportunities to go to different Premier League clubs, Everton and Chelsea.
He said: “Just before signing with Newcastle, I spent a week at Chelsea, and I was also in touch with Everton. Eventually I had a trial at Newcastle, and they did everything for me to stay. It played in their favour. it was a completely different dimension. The Premier League and England was a dream.”
Arriving at the age of 19, Abeid had to bide his time, around a year and a half, before stepping on a pitch in a Newcastle shirt, which took a lot of patience and hard work.
He said: “I was always in the group, but there were always two players that were never on the team sheet. That means that when I had my first appearance with Newcastle a few years later, I really savoured it. It took me two years, with loans in Scotland and Greece to come back stronger.”
During his time at St James’ Park, Abeid spent six months with St Johnston in Scotland, where he made 13 appearances, as well as a season with Panathinaikos a year before he joined them permanently in 2015.
Would his career have been different had he decided to join Everton or Chelsea instead? Who knows?
One thing is certain, though: “I’ve never regretted a decision I made”.
