Newcastle United’s assistant manager Jason Tindall is loved by the fanbase and hated by most other Premier League teams.
In a way, he is the reason why Eddie Howe moved to Tyneside to take up the role as manager in 2021. The 47-year-old had the opportunity to take over Celtic but was not able to get his coaching staff together at the time, so he politely declined the role.
It was a different story when Newcastle United came knocking, however, Jason Tindall was front and centre ready to take on the mammoth task of keeping the club in the Premier League.
Since joining, Tindall has become a fan favourite at Newcastle, with the 47-year-old becoming known for inadvertently being the center of attention, despite Howe being further up the club’s hierarchy.
This season, Tindall has made headlines for heated arguments on the touchline with several Premier League managers. The biggest of which came when Tindall and Aston Villa boss Unai Emery exchanged words last December. The exchange then sparked a brawl down the tunnel at St James’ Park. An incident that was then reported to the FA.
While Howe and Tindall make a great partnership at Newcastle, the latter has made a huge revelation about what the pair are really like behind closed doors.
Jason Tindall on his relationship with Eddie Howe outside Newcastle
Emery is not the only manager Tindall has been seen arguing with this season. Mikel Arteta argued with Tindall during the Magpies’ 1-0 win against Arsenal at St James’ Park. The Newcastle assistant manager and Arteta had to be separated after a counter-attack was thwarted by Fabian Schar.
More recently, Tindall exchanged words with Ruud van Nistelrooy during the Magpies’ 4-0 win against Leicester. The pair will meet again on Monday when Newcastle travel to the King Power Stadium for an important Premier League clash at both ends of the table.
While Howe and Tindall always seem to be enjoying each other’s company on the touchline, the same cannot be said for when they are out of hours.
In a recent interview with the Telegraph, Tindall opened up on his relationship with Howe.
“We see football the same way, we want to play the same way. We instinctively know what the other person wants, what they are thinking. Our principles are the same. As a football brain we think the same. We know what a top manager Eddie is, but there is a lot of pressure on him, the media, the expectations, the football decisions, I’m here to support him.
“You need people around you that you can trust, people you can lean on and we have that relationship. If he’s having a bad day, and look, he’s got a lot better at dealing with those the more experienced he has become, but it’s my job to lift him when it is needed. It’s my job to take some of that pressure away.”
“We don’t really think of each other as friends, but we need each other.
“It’s like a good marriage, we support each other, we rely on each other and we need each other to stay together and be successful.
“With the amount of time we spend at work and in the office together, to socialise with each other after that, it would be too much.”
- READ MORE – Newcastle United boss Eddie Howe tells PGMOL there’s one thing he really doesn’t like about VAR right now
Jason Tindall set to take more limelight at Newcastle
It is no secret that TV cameras seem to find Tindall, despite trying to focus on Howe. However, a Premier League consideration means that fans could be seeing much more of the ‘centre of attention’ next season.
A report at the time claimed that the Premier League were looking to introduce more behind-the-scenes insights into games, with things like half-time team talks considered.
The report also claimed that the Premier League considered half-time interviews with managers, something which is used in other sports with great results.
While the plans have not been set in stone, there will be doubts over whether Howe would be willing to do these interviews during crunch time in games. Howe could pass interview duties over to Tindall to get as much time with his squad as possible.
As it stands, managers conduct interviews before and after games, but that could soon change if the rules are put in place for next season.
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