Hatem Ben Arfa has taken a thinly veiled swipe at his former club Newcastle United, describing his time on Tyneside as hell.

Ben Arfa is now plying his trade with Ligue 1 outfit Nice, a club which he describes as paradise when compared to his time with the Magpies.

"Hell is when everyone turns their back on you," Ben Arfa told French football publication Onze Mondial.

"Well, no, hell is when you can't see the end of the tunnel. You're on your own, with no one to support you and you move forward in the fog. You don't know where you're going, you just know that you're going in the wrong path. I've lived all of that.

"Now, I'm lucky to have a club and especially a coach who support me. It's paradise compared to what I went through. I don't feel lonely anymore. I feel loved."

During his time at St James' Park, between 2010 and 2015, 28-year-old winger Ben Arfa made just 86 appearances in all competitions for Newcastle.