Eddie Howe, Newcastle United manager, was genuinely enthused about what lay ahead in the next months.
Eddie Howe spoke passionately about Newcastle United’s intriguing future ambitions following their stunning 5-1 victory over Sheffield United at St James’ Park.
It’s hard to imagine that, despite the absences of Joelinton, Miguel Almiron, Kieran Trippier, Sven Botman, and Nick Pope, the Magpies are on the verge of qualifying for European play for the second season in a row. But here we are, with four games to go and one shot at a spot in the Europa League or Europa Conference League.
Over the last 48 hours, Howe has made it obvious that he intends to keep Bruno Guimaraes exactly where he is. With a smile, Howe added, “He (Bruno) is very much part of my plans! We need to show him what we can provide as a club.
“I hope that’s enough to keep him. Before the game, the fans paid tribute to him. He scored an extremely significant goal for us. “Hopefully, he will stay with us for many years.”
With Adidas’ return, Sela’s continuous backing, and incoming money from off-field initiatives and Europe, supporters young and old are as excited as they were in the mid-1990s. Given the pre-match flag show, it’s difficult to imagine Bruno garnering that kind of affection anyplace else.
It’s now up to Newcastle to put together a team around him, but things are already starting to come together. It is thought that Howe will be able to bring in three or four new signings this summer, with a clearer vision than last summer.
It’s questionable if Howe’s ideas complemented Dan Ashworth’s, but things didn’t gel as effectively as they may have during the summer months. And Newcastle did not receive everything they required for what has been a trying campaign.
Despite scoring 74 goals, Howe was genuinely delighted as he considered the future for a brief moment. He told Chronicle Live: “I think we’ve got room to improve just in terms of getting numbers back that can help us and these players that have had to go week in and week out – and again today, with a very quick turn-around of games, we couldn’t really rotate the team more than we did, so it’s been a big burden on those lads.
“But they’ve done exceptionally well. I believe there was a lot of tiredness in that first-half performance, which wasn’t like us, but in the second half, when we had a much better feel about ourselves, you saw the offensive quality that we do have and as you say with other players to come back, I think it’s exciting.”
The following week will be spent preparing for Howe’s return to Burnley. If Newcastle wins that game, they may find themselves back in Europe’s departure lounge if other results go their way. They aren’t nearly on the plane yet, but they’re counting down the minutes.
