November 8 marks the four-year anniversary of Eddie Howe being hired as Newcastle United manager and here are his best moments so far.
It has been a magical four years at Newcastle United, even if there have been some downs as well as ups along the way.
PIF finally completed their Newcastle takeover in October 2021 and one of their first major decisions was to sack Steve Bruce, with the club sitting near the bottom of the Premier League table.
On November 8, they hired Eddie Howe as his replacement and it has proven to be a master stroke.
The manager has achieved great things in the four years since and there will hopefully be plenty more to come.
Here are just some of his best moments.
Eddie Howe celebrates Newcastle United qualifying for the Champions League despite losing to Everton.
Photo by Alex Dodd – CameraSport via Getty Images
Carabao Cup triumph
Obviously, Howe’s crowning achievement in his time in the hot seat so far came when he ended the club’s long wait for a trophy by clinching the Carabao Cup.
Newcastle’s last piece of silverware came in 1969 when they won the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup, but it had been 70 years since their last domestic triumph, winning the FA Cup in 1955.
The Magpies took on runaway Premier League leaders Liverpool in the final but blew them away with a rousing performance. Goals from Dan Burn and Alexander Isak secured the 2-1 victory and sparked wild celebrations across the city.
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Howe was the man to finally bring a trophy back to the North East and forever cemented himself as a legend as a result.
Newcastle are a Champions League club again
Howe’s first real success as Newcastle boss came in his first full season.
After comfortably steering the Toon out of relegation trouble and securing an 11th-place finish in 2021-22, he broke into the top four just a year later.
In comparison, it took Manchester City three years to make the Champions League after their big-money takeover.
A return to Europe’s top competition after 20 years away was secured with a goalless draw against Leicester City.
Though the resulting campaign didn’t go to plan as Newcastle finished bottom of the group of death, they did manage a historic victory at St. James’ Park over Paris Saint-Germain.
A drop in form saw them miss out on Europe the following season but they are now back in the Champions League and are becoming a regular sight in the competition.
Eddie Howe turned around the careers of Jacob Murphy and Joelinton
Howe’s true skill as a coach and manager has been evident in the careers of those he has completely turned around at Newcastle.
Joelinton was a flop record-signing, a striker who could not play the role at all. Howe didn’t give up on him, though; he spotted his attributes and talents and repurposed him as an all-action, hard-battling centre-midfielder.
The Brazilian has flourished in the position ever since, even finding the back of the net much more often than he ever did up front.
While Jacob Murphy’s position didn’t need changing, he looked likely to be a victim of Newcastle’s new-found wealth, especially having already been sent out on loan twice during his time at the club.
Yet, Murphy went on to have a career-best season with nine goals and 14 assists and remains a key player today.
That’s just two players whose vast improvement is a testament to Howe’s ability.
Selecting Kieran Trippier when it mattered most
Kieran Trippier was Howe’s first signing as Newcastle boss and he might be one of the most important.
Signed for a steal at £12m, Trippier was the one Newcastle player with a wealth of top-level experience. A La Liga champion with Atletico Madrid, and a player who’d played in high-pressure Champions League and international finals with England.
Though a veteran in the twilight of his career, Trippier’s big-game experience has been vital in changing the mentality of the squad and that was most evident in the Carabao Cup semi-final victories over Arsenal.
Trippier was a surprise inclusion in the side but his performance would completely justify Howe’s decision, as he dominated the right flank as Newcastle powered to victory.
Turning Alexander Isak into a £125m player
Though Newcastle’s relationship with Alexander Isak came to a sour end, Howe’s success with the striker can’t be denied.
Isak commanded a huge £62m fee after rejuvenating his career at Real Sociedad, following a disappointing spell at Borussia Dortmund, but he only scored 10 goals for the Basque side the season before the move.
The Swede only scored 11 times in his first Newcastle season, too, which were hardly the numbers the club were hoping for.
Yet, Howe continued to work with the striker to improve his game and the results were sensational. Isak bagged 25 goals in 2023-24 and beat that tally with 27 the following campaign. It wasn’t just his goal-scoring that impressed, though, but his excellent build-up play and passing as well.
Howe managed to double the value of a player who cost more than £60m. That is no easy feat and deserves very high praise.