Eddie Howe has warned Newcastle United that he would be open to an approach for the England job if he does not receive support under the club’s new structure.
Following Gareth Southgate’s decision to resign two days after England’s 2-1 defeat to Spain in the Euro 2024 final, Howe has been tipped as one of the standout candidates to become the national side’s new manager.
Howe lost two allies at Newcastle last week with co-owners Amanda Staveley and Mehrdad Ghodoussi selling their stake in the club, while Dan Ashworth, who was Newcastle’s sporting director and had a strong relationship with Howe, completed his move to Manchester United at the start of the month.
Howe insists he is keen to remain in charge of Newcastle but admits the upheaval at the club has been ‘very difficult’.
‘I absolutely want to stay but it has to be right for me and the football club,’ Howe said at Newcastle’s pre-season training camp in Germany on Friday.
‘There’s absolutely no point in me saying I’m happy staying at Newcastle if the dynamic isn’t right. I’m certainly not serving Newcastle well if I do that.
‘So, as long as I am happy, feel supported, feel free to work in the way that I want to work, I have not thought of anything else other than Newcastle. I absolutely love the club. I love the supporters. I love where I am at in my career. There is no better place for me to be.
‘There has been a lot of change at the football club this summer. It has been a very difficult summer for everyone connected with the club. With change comes always a new feeling.
‘You can point to PSR, Amanda and Mehrdad, a change in sporting director which, of course, influences me. These are all big changes. That is why I’ve made the points that I have, because this has to work for Newcastle.
‘It’s not about me as the manager. I’m slightly irrelevant. It’s about making sure Newcastle United is as strong as it can be for the next season and beyond. We’ve all got to come together and make sure we are the force that we want to be.
‘For me, it’s not about England. That is absolutely someone else’s conversation, not mine. Mine is Newcastle. To speak about something else while manager of Newcastle is wrong. I don’t think I have to say the answer again. The answer is clear.’
Next England manager odds
Eddie Howe: 2/1
Graham Potter: 5/2
Lee Carsley: 7/2
Jurgen Klopp: 17/2
Mauricio Pochettino: 9/1
Odds via Betfair
When asked if he expects to be in charge of Newcastle’s first game of the season against Southampton on August 17, Howe replied: ‘As long as I’m happy in the position that I’m in.
‘As long as I feel supported by the football club and free to work in the way that I want to work, yes. That is the crucial thing.
‘I’m not talking about England. England is not even on my focus, it’s all about Newcastle, it has been all summer. I think England is a very special job for someone. I am very patriotic and I’m not ashamed to say that. I love my country. I want my country to do well. I was gutted for Gareth and the lads that they did not win the Euros but I don’t have a burning sensation in me that I have to do it at some stage.
‘I have been really happy for two-and-a-half years. I have loved every second of the relationships that I’ve had and the way I’ve been able to work. I think that has brought success.
‘We’re in the flux of change, it’s just happened. I can’t say with a definitive answer where that will lead. I hope it leads to everything that I’ve just said. I’m not really seeking assurances. I don’t think I have the right to challenge those or the want to challenge those decisions. The club has to choose its direction and that is absolutely their right.
‘I’ve got no issue with that, but obviously I have to be happy in my work. I have to feel that this is something that can benefit me and the football club for it to work.’