The appointment of Ross Wilson as Newcastle United’s sporting director looks like a brilliant development for Eddie Howe.
Wilson arrived as Newcastle United’s sporting director last month, the third appointment PIF have made in that position since their takeover in October 2021.
Previous incumbents Dan Ashworth and Paul Mitchell did not last very long, though for different reasons.
Ashworth wanted to join Manchester United, while Mitchell and Howe did not always share the best working relationship at Newcastle.
Now Wilson is through the door, the Newcastle United manager appears to be in a stronger position at the club.
Howe rates Wilson’s work as a sporting director highly, and it seems life behind the scenes is now much easier for him.
Ross Wilson and Eddie Howe already working well together at Newcastle United
According to George Caulkin, there was “no relationship” between Howe and Mitchell when the latter arrived to replace Ashworth.
Neither Howe nor the players were told much about the big picture for the club going forward.
The respective arrivals of David Hopkinson and Wilson as Newcastle’s new CEO and sporting director have brought a significant change behind the scenes, however.
Speaking on the Pod of Tyne Podcast, Caulkin revealed that Howe, Hopkinson and Wilson are actively working together to bring the club forward.
For now, there doesn’t appear to be the chaos behind the scenes that has been rather prevalent at the club in recent seasons.
“You know, that Amanda Staveley and Mehrdad Ghoddousi had left the club, Paul Mitchell had come in, there was no relationship there, there was no sense of him [Howe] being told, or players being told, what the big picture was,” he said.
“Now, that is not the way it’s been under David Hopkinson. Ross Wilson is somebody who is an ally of Eddie Howe and they’re all kind of trying to work out how to change things, but how to change it together.
“That is not to say that everything’s all sweetness and light, because it can’t be when the team has been struggling, you know, particularly away from home.
“And I don’t think anybody is trying to sort of, you know, to downplay it.”
Eddie Howe going nowhere at Newcastle United and Ross Wilson proves it
Howe is starting to come under question from Newcastle fans following a poor season on the domestic front thus far.
Still, barring a disaster, it seems very likely that the 47-year-old will remain in position.
Earlier this month, Geordie Boot Boys revealed that PIF continue to back Howe as Newcastle United manager.
The fact that Wilson, a close ally, is also in a position of power behind the scenes surely only strengthens that.
Howe finally has a structure in place above him behind the scenes to address some of the turbulent times at the club in recent months.
Now, he’s got to bring some order back into the team on the pitch.
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