Graeme Souness has made it clear whether or not he thinks Eddie Howe should be Newcastle United manager next season.
There have been plenty of debates about Eddie Howe‘s future at St James’ Park, during what has been a tough season for Newcastle United.
The Magpies have not been able to compete at the same level as last season, with crazy cup draws, injury and suspension all conspiring against Newcastle United to turn what could have been an incredible campaign into a bit of a slog.
Eddie Howe was under pressure at Newcastle earlier this year
During the winter months, Eddie Howe was under pressure for the first time as Newcastle United manager. While the word from the British owners was that they wanted Howe to stay, PIF‘s feelings were unclear.
There were rumours of possible replacements in the media, with PIF casting their eye over Roberto Mancini. Elsewhere, Richard Keys continued his one-man campaign to get Jose Mourinho to replace Howe in the St James’ Park hot seat.
But Howe has weathered the storm, and his side are now sixth in the Premier League with six games to go. There is even a chance they could finish as high as fifth, if results go their way.
That would be a remarkable achievement, and suddenly this season looks like it could end in rather positive fashion.
Graeme Souness delivers Eddie Howe verdict
But some pundits continue to question whether Howe is the man to take Newcastle to where PIF want the club to be. They want to be at the top, winning titles and trophies on a consistent basis.
Pundit Simon Jordan has stated on the TalkSPORT YouTube channel that he does not think Howe can get the Magpies to that level, and has now asked former Toon boss Graeme Souness if he thinks the Newcastle owners will retain their faith in Howe.
“I would suggest that they should but whether they do or not I would doubt,” Souness said.
“Not in the short term [they won’t get rid of Howe]. Is it a conversation they would have had? I’m not so sure. They will see the injuries they have had. The Tonali one is embarrassing for the ones who made the decision. That was unfortunate and then the injuries came along.
“I hope they have a sympathetic view of how they see the manager. He did so well for them, he has people in the city on side and he is good with the press.”
PIF would be mad to get rid of Howe as Newcastle manager
As Souness says, the Newcastle owners absolutely should keep Howe as manager beyond this season. And it seems extremely likely that they will, with the Magpies currently enjoying a strong end to the campaign.
If the season ended right now, it would have to be considered a decent year. Sixth in the Premier League, Europa League qualification and two cup quarter finals. That is not a massive drop off from last year’s overachievement, and you also have to factor in the injuries that Newcastle have had.
Howe’s squad has been decimated for most of the season, and that has to be taken into consideration. While some may say it is an excuse because every club has injuries, the amount of long-term absentees that Newcastle have had has been staggering. It has been laughable at times, with injury after injury making Howe’s job harder every week.
But he showed against Tottenham on Saturday why he is a top level manager, and why Newcastle fans want him to keep leading this project for as long as possible.
There may come a time that PIF decide that they need someone else to reach that next level, but that time is certainly not now.
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