Matt Targett 'surprised' at Aston Villa transfer as Newcastle loanee makes Lucas Digne claim

Matt Targett has admitted the main reason why he left Aston Villa on loan was due to the £25million signing of Lucas Digne, but claims he was surprised that Steven Gerrard managed to lure a defender of "that calibre" to the club.

The 26-year-old joined Newcastle United on loan in January following Digne's arrival at Villa Park from Everton.

Targett made his Newcastle debut in the 3-1 win over the Toffees last week, but missed the Magpies' clash against Villa at the weekend, as he was ineligible to play against his parent club.

He is likely to have played his last game for Villa despite only leaving the club on loan, with the defender keen to play as many games as he can as he approaches the prime years of his career.

"It was a difficult decision because obviously I was pretty much the only left-back last season and I knew the club wanted to sign a left-back, I was quite surprised when they signed someone like Lucas Digne," Targett said on .

"Obviously he was out there at the time and the club had to do what they had to do, but it was quite hard to take when they signed someone of that calibre, but if that's where the club wants to go then I completely respect that.

"But at the same time, I'm 26 and I don't want to be sitting on the bench, I want to look back on my career knowing that I've played as many Premier League games as possible.

"So that was probably one of the main reasons."