Eddie Howe’s year at Newcastle: From relegation fight to Champions League battle

Eddie Howe joined Newcastle on 8 November 2021, so he has been on the bench of the famous English team for more than a year. And for the club and its loyal fans, it’s a year they’ll remember fondly after years of hardship.

Eddie Howe was not the first choice of Newcastle’s new owners. Unai Emery and Pablo Fonseca were linked with the club, but nothing came of it. But that’s not something anyone at the club needs to be upset about. He eventually took the helm, and in hindsight, that’s a great move.

The former long-time Bournemouth coach took over the Magpies in a desperate situation – after 11 rounds they were in 19th place, without a single win and with just 5 points.

It took Howe a while to get the team out of relegation waters (they won only once out of the first 9 games), but eventually Newcastle under his leadership started to run like clockwork.

With 12 wins from the last 18 games of the season, fans could celebrate their retention and finish in the quiet mid-table. And above all, they could look forward to next season with great anticipation.

And the Magpies players are showing them they were rightly excited. The team is doing so well that Howe had to face questions about whether Newcastle are in contention for the title after a clear 4-1 win over Southampton.

While he refused to comment on that, looking at the table, such considerations are simply unavoidable. We find the team from the North East of England in 3rd place. In addition, the Magpies have the 3rd best offense with 28 goals scored and the best defense with only 11 goals conceded.

In the calendar year 2021, Newcastle set a new negative record in the Premier League – they received 80 goals. In short, Howe and his charges have done a hell of a job.

Some fans of other league sides attribute Newcastle’s great performances under Howe primarily to the new owners and their large fortunes. Yes, on the one hand you can’t neglect the contribution of players bought recently.

Such as Trippier, who is 3rd best of all league players in chances created (32), 2nd best in chances created from standard situations (20), and best in successful centres (50).

Or the likes of Bruno Guimarães, perhaps the team’s most key player, who adapted brilliantly to the Premier League immediately after his arrival from Lyon and has been showered with praise from all sides ever since.

On the other hand, however, it would be unfair to overlook how Howe has managed to improve the players who were already at Newcastle before his arrival. He turned Joelinton, who was struggling in attack under Steve Bruce and certainly not fulfilling the role of the most expensive signing at the time, into a midfielder in great form who was probably not far away from a World Cup nomination.

Miguel Almirón, who scored 9 league goals in 110 games in his first 4 seasons at St. James’s Park, already has 8 shots in 14 games this season and currently holds a 4 game goal streak in the league. In October he scored a sensational 6 goals in the same number of games and deservedly received the Player of the Month award.

Newcastle’s bet on Howe is simply paying off so far. The team is thriving, most players are in excellent form and fans can dream about how this season will turn out.

It may indeed be too early for the title, but Champions League qualification looks like a realistic goal. And that would be a tremendous achievement a year after the Magpies had one foot in League 2.

But the season is still a long one and there are plenty of challenges ahead for Howe and his charges. The closest one will come this weekend when they welcome Chelsea to their home stadium.

Sources: The Athletic, Livesport