It’s been over a month since the takeover of Newcastle United, and a lot has happened in that time.
We finally saw the back of Steve Bruce a couple of weeks after Mike Ashley, and this week saw the departure of Steve Agnew, Steve Clemence and Lee Charnley.
We’re also anticipating the long-awaited tearing down of the Sports Direct eyesores – a lingering reminder of you know who.
It finally feels like that fresh start – even if Eddie Howe will be managing the team from a hotel in Newcastle this afternoon!
We know the new owners have invested £38 million into the club, and we know the training ground will be addressed as a priority.
We finally have a new manager, who brings with him new ideas and a much fresher mentality than we’ve had in the past two years. Let’s be honest, he’ll be of more use on FaceTime from his hotel room than Bruce was from the dugout!
The build-up to the Spurs match after the takeover was naturally huge. But I think it could be just as big this time around, now that we’re starting to see what the near future will look like under Howe.
At first, it was a celebration of leaving Mike Ashley behind. Of getting our club back. Of the possibilities that our wildest dreams could come true.
Now it’s about celebrating the start of that future. We’ve got an uphill battle to climb, but it feels like we can do it now. I don’t think we’re under any pretences that we’re going to suddenly storm the league, but everything I’ve heard from Howe so far, I’ve liked.
At first, the appointment felt a tiny bit underwhelming given the calibre of some of the other names we were linked with. I think realistically, we knew that Conte and Mourinho were pipe dreams at this point of our journey. But the likes of Favre, Emery and Fonseca excited us.
I’ve also heard people say that Howe is a failed manager. Why? For once single failure to keep a team up when he had it overachieving for five years?
His sheer ability to bring Bournemouth up through the ranks and turn them into a solid Premier League team should be applauded. He managed to get the best out of players like Wilson, Ritchie and Fraser.
People say his signings were poor and point towards Ibe. But he also signed Callum Wilson for pennies.
For every Eddie Howe failure people draw upon, there are two success to counter it.
Everything I’ve heard from Howe, and Staveley and co on his appointment, has been positive and has me excited. The stories of the boosted morale on the training ground. The fact that players are sitting up and paying attention now (yes, professional footballers should always give it their all, but you can understand a lack of motivation after two years of being coached by a footballing dinosaur). The photos from the training ground that show Howe getting stuck into everything.
I can’t wait for today, even if Howe himself will be missing. I think the future is bright.
