It was always going to be difficult when the inevitable happened, that is Bruno Guimaraes AND Eddie Howe leaving.
Bruno’s departure is more evidence that there is very little loyalty in football. He may not have done an Alexander Isak, but having signed a contract making him the highest paid player at the club and then declaring that he wants to become a legend on Barrack Road, you could be forgiven for being drawn in by Bruno’s passion for our club.
Contracts only mean one thing in this day and age, the selling club can demand a fee when the player decides he wants to jump ship.
Maybe the Shearers, Gerrards, Le Tissiers, Bulls still remain in the ‘working man’s’ game which is now purely driven by money, but it is becoming more and more difficult to believe that.
I don’t blame Bruno for wanting to play for a side that is likely to bring him league titles and provide him a realistic chance of winning the Champions League. I also don’t blame him for wanting to double his wages, in a short career where I would also look to try and maximise my earnings. The Bruno transfer to Arsenal feels very different to Sandro Tonali for instance, where it is difficult to argue against the fact that he has left for money and that competing for titles is lower down in his list of priorities. But it is still a hard pill to swallow.
When we were taken over and promised that we would compete, very few would have imagined that we would have achieved what we have up to this point. Up until last season, the trajectory has headed in one direction, which was always going to be unsustainable. Why? Because of the regulations put in place that stops us, and others, from building that consistency. Bloody hell, are we paying for this now, but the future is bright. We have to believe and carry this into the stadium and onto the pitch because it is this that will set us aside from the others.
I remember the day when Sir Bobby left and the build up to that. There was noise from sections of the fanbase who were asking for change, which is now even harder to ignore due to social media and how mainstream media seem to focus on this rather than doing some investigative journalism and speaking to the fans who understand the situation a little more.
This is my opinion, but I believe that Eddie Howe left because of the negativity and he wanted to leave on his own terms and before the relationship turned sour. I believe he has been pushed out by a divided fanbase. For which I am gutted. Eddie Howe was not only a great manager and coach, he was also a very humble person who wore his heart on his sleeve. He got us, he got the club and we all should have had his back for many years to come. Eddie Howe has helped to give me and the many thousands of fans, one of the best days of our lives…EVER! But by god has that been quickly forgotten by so many after one difficult season.
Having been hampered by FFP, PSR, SCR, blah, blah, blah, it has been nothing short of astonishing when it comes to our meteoric rise from the ashes. Eddie dealt with this, as well as wearing a multitude of hats off the pitch due to an incompetent sporting director, then a lack of a sporting director, the absence of our previous CEO (through no fault of his own), the amount of games and the lack of depth, the UEFA financial constraints, and the downing of tools of a player in which the team was built around for that upcoming season. Eddie maintained composure and became that reassuring figure at the head of the club. Eddie allowed us to keep our faith in the ‘project’ and somehow had us competing in four competitions going into February last season. The season that many have supposedly seen as a bit of a disaster. To make matters worse, Newcastle United continue to miss out on our transfer targets as we cannot stump up the wages or provide Champions League football. We’re also streamlining our salary expenditures to meet with the agreement in place with UEFA and avoid further sanctions from them. Gordon and Tonali really had to leave to support this by all accounts.
I will be forever grateful to Eddie Howe. Like so many fans of Newcastle United, it’s more than just a club to us and Eddie knows this. Eddie Howe as humble as he is, will hopefully one day realise that he is now a Newcastle United legend, a word use far too frequently in my opinion but one which is very befitting of the man.
Eddie Howe joins the likes of Alan Shearer, Jackie Milburn, Joe Harvey, Bob Moncur, Hughie Gallacher, Jimmy Lawrence, Malcolm Macdonald, Peter Beardsley, Sir Bobby Robson and Sir John Hall.
There is a tier below where you find Bruno in the company of Rob Lee, Les Ferdinand, Andy Cole, Shay Given, David Kelly, Terry Hibbitt, Terry McDermott, Glenn Roeder, Mick Martin, John Anderson, Colin Veitch, Steve Harper, Tino Asprilla, Gary Speed, Nobby Solano, Phillippe Albert, Pavel Srnicek, Len White, Kieran Trippier, Jimmy Scoular, Micky Quinn and Calum Wilson.
Undoubtedly there are players missing from these lists, and one I have missed out purposely. I just wanted to get across the fact that the likes of Bruno, Cole, Hibbitt and Given don’t come into that legendary status which I would save for those who have brought things to our club and us that will rarely be seen again. The one name missing, is of course, Kevin Keegan.
I was born in 1982, so do not remember his playing days at St James’ Park. By god do I remember the second coming though…WOW!!! I’m choosing to forget about the third and the cretin that is Mike Ashley.
I first met King Kev after training at Durham as a young little whipper snapper. I was in dream land watching my heroes up close. But when I got to stand directly in front of KK I was completely in awe of the man. I went to shake his hand to which he corrected me. Telling me that you always shake with your right hand and get a nice firm grip. This was over 30 years ago and remains one of my stand out childhood memories. I was lucky enough to meet him again at the Lancastrian Suite after a dinner talk. Once again, I was in awe as Kevin Keegan dispelled the myth that you should never meet your hero.
King Kev didn’t just save us from the brink (with the help of Sir John Hall), he brought the belief and passion to the club. He brought a love of football to so many who didn’t even support Newcastle United. Setting the foundations for what and where we are today, mainly lies with Kevin Keegan. Not only did he almost bring us to the pinnacle of English football, watching a brand of football that took every neutral’s breath away. He did it all with dignity and never let his principles slip. Remind you of anyone?
Kevin Keegan had a huge impact on my life as a young lad, helping me navigate through some difficult times as a young kid by bringing a love of football and Newcastle United into my life. Both were there beforehand, but this grew in a similar way to Jack’s beanstalk. He didn’t know this, but I did and it really hit home how important he has been in my life when he passed away. Particularly when I went to St James’ to pay my respects.
Photo by The Mag
I will be one of many thousands who remembers him this way. I will also remember him as the most important person in the history of Newcastle United. The man who epitomises our club and sits at the top when it comes to club legends. For me, Kevin Keegan is THE Newcastle United legend.
To finish, we’ve bought young with the intention of profiting from their sales. This really is the only way we can try to close the gap on the so called ‘big six’. Although it feels like that gap will always remain. The harsh reality is that we have got to get used to this if you haven’t already, and support the manager and players on the pitch, unequivocally. Welcome to a world in which the highest governing body tries to sell off their biggest asset (the World Cup) to the highest bidder.
Until the rules and regulations change somewhat, we’ll probably always be fighting an uphill battle and pinning our hopes on a cup win or a one off Leicester City type season. My hopes and best wishes go out to the incomings, the new coaching team and the new manager. This is not the Ashley era and we have much to look forward to with a young and hungry manager, who by all accounts likes to play the football we love up here. Just do us a favour please Herr Jaissle, batter the unwashed down the road and send them packing.