HOWE: I’D HAVE KEPT CHERRIES UP IF NOT FOR COVID
BOURNEMOUTH v NEWCASTLE Vitality Stadium: 5.30pm
BY IAN MURTAGH
EDDIE HOWE’S first return to Bournemouth as Newcastle head coach will bring back mixed feelings for the most successful boss in the club’s history.
Howe was voted the Football League’s Manager of the Decade for his exploits with the Cherries.
And he can expect a rousing ovation from home fans after leading them into the Premier League for the first time and keeping them in the top flight for five seasons.
But it was that final year on the south coast which brought the biggest disappointment of his managerial career, with Bournemouth going down on the final day of the 2019-20 campaign.
Within a week, his second spell had ended after eight years in charge and he spent 14 months out of the game before taking charge of Newcastle following the Saudi takeover.
Howe has now revealed he would have quit the Cherries even if he had pulled off the great escape three years ago.
While he denies becoming stale, the 45-year-old had decided to leave weeks before Bournemouth’s fate was sealed. “I think there is a shelf life for a manager and I had probably reached that point when, for the club, I needed to move,” said Howe (with the Championship trophy he won with Bournemouth in 2015, below).
“In management you do not have an infinite amount of time in one job. There comes a time when players have probably had enough of you. So you have to do one of two things – either consistently change the players or the manager has to leave.”
Howe’s affection for Bournemouth remains. At one point he even referred to them as “we” as he talked about that last fateful year there.
“I was incredibly frustrated that season but never felt I had lost control,” he insisted.
“Anything that could go wrong did go wrong. We had crippling injuries and, if you look at the teams I put out, we were constantly playing catch-up.
“But it was a great learning experience even though it was painful for me and the club.
“And I still do not believe, we,
Bournemouth would have been relegated without Covid because the supporters can be so powerful in such a tight-knit ground.”
Howe’s preparations for this evening’s game have been interrupted by numerous requests for Wembley tickets, with the Carabao Cup final just a fortnight away.
“I’ve had random text requests from people whose number I don’t even know,” he said.
“That’s the focus of everyone but we’ve tried to ensure that it’s not a distraction for the players.”
Howe has numerous attacking options available with Alexander Isak fit and available and Anthony Gordon pushing for his first start after an impressive cameo in the 1-1 draw against West Ham.
But he is likely to stick with Allan Saint-Maximin despite a hit-and-miss display last week.
“I’ve got tough choices but they are of the kind managers like to make,” added Howe.