Newcastle United captain Jamaal Lascelles has praised Eddie Howe’s impact at the club, and bears no ill feeling towards him for recently dropping him to the bench.
The Magpies are in a great position right now, after a tough start to the season.
Despite losing their last two games before the international break, Newcastle are one of the form teams of 2022 so far.
They’ve pulled nine points clear of the relegation zone.
And Howe was got the team much tighter at the back, while playing some good football further forwards.
All being well, the club will not be contesting a relegation battle with a few games left to play.
Newcastle’s defensively solidity has been key to picking up points over the past couple of months.
New signing Dan Burn has come in and been a revelation, and Fabian Schar has also dramatically improved.
The two have been keeping captain Lascelles out of the team of late, but the 28-year-old doesn’t mind Howe not starting him while the team is in a good moment.
He told Sky Sports reporter Keith Downie: “I’ve got a great relationship with the manager; I’ve got so much respect for his honesty and communication skills. If he’d said I wasn’t good enough I’d maybe feel different. But my biggest thing is the team is doing well.
“I’ll continue to remain professional. The manager will get nothing less than hard work – because it’s all I know. We’re in a good place – it’s the best feeling we’ve had for a very long time here. The manager has created a family feeling, a lot of it is down to him & his staff.”
Lascelles was unavailable to face Aston Villa in February due to illness.
Since then, he has made just one appearance for the club, when he came in as part of a back three against Chelsea.
Lascelles’ comments show fantastic attitude and how everyone respects Howe
It is brilliant to hear Lascelles talking like this.
This is absolutely how you respond to losing your place in the starting XI.
And Howe must take his fair share of credit. Clearly, he has created an environment whereby the team spirit is strong and everybody is singing from the same hymn sheet.
Lascelles was really unlucky to miss that game with Villa. He had played really well in the two games before against Leeds and Everton.
The £40,000-a-week star didn’t necessarily deserve to start warming the bench, but Schar and Burn have both been near-faultless.
Thankfully, he understands how it is and will train hard to push those ahead of him.
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