Newcastle
Eddie Howe has Revealed he is always communicating with Newcastle United owners as the club looks to end a run of disappointing results
Eddie Howe has revealed he is “always communicating” with Newcastle United owners as the club looks to end a run of disappointing results.
The Magpies have lost six of their last seven matches in all competitions, exiting both the Carabao Cup and Champions League, and dropping to ninth in the Premier League table.
While there has been some concern among the fanbase at the dip in form, the message behind the scenes from the likes of Amanda Staveley and Mehrdad Ghodoussi has remained consistent.
Asked if he’d spoken to the owners recently, Howe said: “Always communicating with them, that’s no different whether we win, lose or draw so those communications are always there and everybody is working as a team.”
Rather than panic, Howe – who guided the club to Champions League qualification in May 12 months after battling relegation – has called for Newcastle to show their inner strength.
He added: “There isn’t a time when you don’t have to stick together. The best clubs, the best teams, do have that inner strength and belief in each other and team spirit that they can ride difficult moments and they can survive the successes because both are challenging.
“I have absolutely no problems with the players. We will make an effort to improve because we recognize that we need to.”
Howe has been under fire in the last few weeks, especially following the Boxing Day 3-1 home loss to Nottingham Forest.
He takes his Newcastle side to Liverpool on New Year’s Day before facing bitter rivals Sunderland in the FA Cup. League matches against Manchester City and Aston Villa then follow.
“I don’t look at it like I’m in the spotlight now,” Howe said. “I’m always in the spotlight and criticism is part of this job. It goes hand in hand with it. You say I haven’t been criticised, but it just goes with the territory.
He takes his Newcastle side to Liverpool on New Year’s Day before facing bitter rivals Sunderland in the FA Cup. League matches against Manchester City and Aston Villa then follow.
“I don’t look at it like I’m in the spotlight now,” Howe said. “I’m always in the spotlight and criticism is part of this job. It goes hand in hand with it. You say I haven’t been criticised, but it just goes with the territory.
“With no disrespect intended, I’ve learnt to accept and comprehend that and to just forget about it while making sure I assist the guys. For me, that hasn’t altered.
“This has been a challenging time,” he continued.For us, December was always going to be extremely difficult. We knew coming into the month just how significant it would be. I believe it has contributed to the previous two results, and they’ve probably been the ones that have hurt us the most. Obviously, we’ve lost two contests that we were determined to win, so the players have had to respond to some trying times. Our performances have fallen short of our expectations.
“In my opinion, this is a
