The heat is on for the Magpies in Austria
NEWCASTLE United trained in 27-degree sunshine during an intense session on the eve of the final game of their tour of Austria.
The Magpies will face top eight Bundesliga outfit Mainz 05 at the Grenzlandstadion Arena in Kufstein tomorrow afternoon before heading back to Tyneside for a few days ahead of their second tour of the summer to Portugal.
There were only a couple of absentees in training yesterday morning as the session got under way at 11am.
The Chronicle was granted exclusive access to the club’s training camp in Saalfelden and can report that team spirit is excellent with the 2022/23 season now just three weeks away.
Here’s a notes special on what we spotted during Eddie Howe’s side’s final main training drill in Austria.
The work doesn’t stop for Newcastle players in Austria
The players have been having early nights at their luxury hotel in
Saalfelden after Howe worked them hard twice a day in the early part of this trip.
And players have been doing extra work on their way to training by cycling, which is a couple of miles from the hotel.
The likes of Kieran Trippier, Jonjo Shelvey and Allan Saint-Maximin all biked in and the team bus that carried the kit was empty in terms of players.
Once the bikes were propped up the players quickly got to work.
Good news on the injury front
Matt Ritchie had missed the friendly win over 1860 Munich with “tightness” in his legs with the former Scotland international watching from the stands.
But he is now back in full training and worked with the main group yesterday.
Jamal Lewis was the other absentee with the Northern Ireland international picking up a niggle.
Lewis did train but not with the main group and worked with the fitness coach.
Newcastle’s only absentee was Federico Fernandez with the South American not present at training.
Players enjoy music before starting work
The music blared out in the sunshine as the players got to work beneath the Leogang Mountains.
There was a wide range on offer but just to remind us of home Lindisfarne’s Fog on the Tyne, Busk
er’s Coming Home Newcastle and Junior Turner’s Banks of the River Tyne were given a spin.
There was also a mumbled version of Neil Diamond’s last summer’s rejuvenated Euro 2020 hit Sweet Caroline as the players slipped their boots on.
United are working hard but also playing hard too it seems.
There is no hiding place for anybody slacking
I honestly don’t think any player would dream of slacking off under Eddie Howe.
Howe presents himself as a friendly guy in the media but there is a demanding side to him training.
Players were reminded about their work-rate in the session and Howe also called on his dressing room leaders to lift things with Kieran Trippier and Dan Burn name- checked in training.
Every single segment of training is also filmed by drone meaning there really is no hiding place under Howe.