Paulo Fonseca claims he was ‘very close’ to becoming Newcastle manager

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Paulo Fonseca has claimed the was very close to becoming Steve Bruce’s successor at Newcastle United.

The 49-year-old has been speaking to Il Romanista about potentially coming to manage in the Premier League some day.

Fonseca was one of many names that rarely left the gossip columns back when Newcastle sacked Bruce in October.

For quite a while, he was one of the favourites to become the club’s new manager to lead the new era.

The Telegraph actually reported that Newcastle were ready to offer Fonseca a £6 million-a-season contract. And that he had impressed Amanda Staveley in his interview.

He had outlined his football philosophy, and had several Zoom calls.

The final decision needed rubber-stamping by chairman Yasir Al-Rumayyan.

But that ultimately never came, as Newcastle switched their attention to Unai Emery and Eddie Howe. Howe, of course, was eventually the man the new owners felt was right for the job.

Speaking to Il Romanista, Fonseca said: “Today in England there are the best teams and the best football in the world. At the beginning of the season I was very close to Tottenham but that did not materialize, as well as with Newcastle.

“Let’s see in the future, I think it will happen. Everyone would love to work in England to experience the fantastic atmosphere. It’s something you can’t find in another country

Newcastle have landed on their feet with Eddie Howe, as Paulo Fonseca makes Magpies claim

Fonseca may well have become Newcastle’s manager.

He’s clearly had some success at Shakhtar Donetsk and seems to be someone that works passionately.

But Newcastle fans will be delighted that Howe was the man the new owners plumped for.

The former Bournemouth boss was clearly determined to get back into management. He felt he could get Newcastle back on the straight and narrow.

He has certainly done that. He’s managed to get a tune out of so many players who had lost their way under the previous manager.

Who knows if Fonseca could have achieved similar things.

It’s certainly difficult to imagine anyone doing a better job than Howe has done so far.

It doesn’t just boil down to Newcastle being better on the pitch.

The appointment has clearly had a huge effect on uniting everybody at the club after a difficult era with the club’s previous ownership.