Newcastle United are gearing up for a crucial week in the transfer market as they aim to strengthen their squad ahead of their Premier League opener against Aston Villa. Howe is hopeful of securing the services of Malick Thiaw and Yoane Wissa before then, with indications that both players are eager to join the Magpies' ranks.
Despite this, Howe remains cautious as negotiations with AC Milan and Brentford for the pair continue. After the 2-0 loss to Atletico Madrid on Saturday night, Howe faced the press with remarkable composure, particularly when questioned about Alexander Isak for the second consecutive day.
He said: "I want players that really want to play for this football club. I want the best, strongest squad possible but I really want players who want to play for this football club."
Eddie Howe is hoping to add Malick Thiaw and Yoane Wissa to his squad next week (Image: Getty Images)
Howe could have easily shown irritation or annoyance during his post-match media briefing, but instead, he chose to remain calm and collected.
Reflecting on what has been a grim transfer window for the Magpies, Howe remarked: "I've always tried to keep a very balanced view on things, it's never as good as you think it is when you feel good, and it's never as bad as you think it is when you feel bad.
"At the moment, I'm very neutral. I've seen the challenges, and I know the challenges that we face. This is new territory for us, but I also believe from those tough moments you can actually build something even more special, if you come out the other side, and that's a big if.
"So for me, the priority now is the players that we have fit and available, and making sure they're fully understanding of what's expected of them and making sure we're resilient enough to deal with a lot of outside noise, a lot of speculation on us, which through no fault of our own is negative, and we need to cut that out, and unite even stronger."