Targett left Aston Villa to join Newcastle on loan for the rest of the season in the winter transfer window and started in their 3-1 win over Everton last week.
The defender did not feature against his parent club Villa but is expected to be a key player in Newcastle’s fight to stay in the Premier League this season.
Targett admitted that he knew that Aston Villa wanted to sign a left-back, but conceded that he did not expect the club to spend big and bring in a player of Digne’s quality in the winter transfer window.
The 26-year-old insisted that he respects Aston Villa’s desire to improve but stressed that he needed to leave as he was not prepared to just sit on the bench at Villa Park for the rest of the season.
Targett said on talkSPORT: “Last season obviously I was pretty much the only left-back.
“I knew that the club wanted to sign a left-back and I was quite surprised that they signed someone like Lucas Digne.
“It was quite hard to take, to sign someone of that calibre and that’s where the club wanted to go and I completely respect that.
“But at the same time I am 26 and I don’t want to be sitting on the bench.
“I want to look back at my career and play as many Premier League games as possible.
“That’s probably one of the main reasons.”
Targett still has a contract until 2025 with Aston Villa and he will have a decision to make when he returns to the club in the summer.
