The turnaround that Newcastle United have made this year has been nothing short of remarkable. In the first half of the season, the club had looked destined for relegation and when Eddie Howe arrived at the club in November, as the replacement for Steve Bruce, even keeping the Magpies in the Premier League would have been viewed as a big achievement on the part of the manager.
It is safe to say that Howe has delivered and then some. Not only has he managed to avoid relegation, but under his management, Newcastle United have been one of the most in-form teams in all of Europe this year and finished 11th in the Premier League.
Thus, it is safe to say that Howe has already won the fans over and appears to be here for the long run.
Bruce, who was shown the St James’ Park exit door earlier in the season, has commented on the job that Howe has done at Newcastle United. As reported by Four Four Two (via The Shields Gazzette), he said:
"“Eddie’s had a lot more money to spend than I ever did, but he’s brought in some good players and improved the team. I’m very happy to acknowledge that, because Newcastle, and the fans, deserve the success.“I worked there when everyone was talking about a potential takeover. The club needed new owners to come in to re-energise it, and I always knew that, if it came during my watch, I probably wouldn’t be hanging around for too long.“I just hope that, a few years down the line, some of those supporters who never wanted me will look back at my time in charge and say ‘under the circumstances, Brucey didn’t do too bad a job after all’.”"
Bruce comments on the job that Howe has done as Newcastle United manager
It is safe to say that Howe has had more resources as Newcastle United manager and the club even shelled out around £90 million in transfer fees in the January window.
Of course, the moves that they pulled off at the start of the year have paid off, as is evident from the progress that they have made and their rise up the Premier League table over the course of the past few months.
Howe looks like the man who can take this club forward in the future and could even challenge the traditional big six in the future if he is backed properly. All indications suggest that he will be, with the Magpies expected to splash out in the summer.