Eddie Howe, Manager of Newcastle United, looks on prior to the Premier League match between Crystal Palace and Newcastle United at Selhurst Park on April 12, 2026 in London, England. (Photo by Steve Bardens/Getty Images)placeholder image
Eddie Howe, Manager of Newcastle United, looks on prior to the Premier League match between Crystal Palace and Newcastle United at Selhurst Park on April 12, 2026 in London, England. (Photo by Steve Bardens/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Eddie Howe Newcastle United future: The Magpies boss has assessed what it would take to keep him at the club beyond the summer.
For the first time in his four-and-a-half year tenure at Newcastle United, Eddie Howe’s future has been called into serious question.
Howe is among the favourites to leave his post as Newcastle head coach after being beaten 2-1 by a Crystal Palace side managed by the current favourite, Oliver Glasner.
The Palace boss has already declared his intention to leave Selhurst Park at the end of the season, Howe has made no such claims. However, there is plenty of doubt surrounding the 48-year-old’s future on Tyneside after a relentlessly punishing 2025/26 campaign.
A tough season
Newcastle let another lead slip late on to lose against a Palace side with very little to play for domestically. Jean Philippe-Mateta’s stoppage-time penalty condemned the Magpies to a 14th league defeat of the season, with 25 points now dropped from winning positions.
In Howe’s first season in charge, which saw Newcastle sit rock bottom of the Premier League table at one stage having failed to win any of their opening 14 games, the side finished 11th with 15 defeats.
Now, four-and-a-half years into a takeover and over £650million invested into the playing squad, the side are on course for their worst season since the days of Mike Ashley’s ownership.
The expectations of the club, on the back of a Carabao Cup win and Champions League qualification followed by CEO David Hopkinson’s aim of making the club one of the best in the world by 2030 (just seven transfer windows away), simply do not match the reality of what has happened on the pitch this season.
The defeat at Palace wasn’t a freak result, it was the norm of what we’ve come to expect from Howe’s side this season. The players must take some responsibility for another lethargic performance followed by a predictable collapse, with individual errors being the icing on the cake of despondency.
But the buck will always stop with the manager. It’s his team, his players and his tactics. Regardless of how much people want to point fingers in various directions, Howe knows that he will ultimately be held accountable for how his side performs on the pitch.
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Eddie Howe uncertainty at NUFC
Last month, Newcastle’s CEO Hopkinson admitted he didn’t have a stance on Howe’s future and he ‘expects’ a strong end to the season in the final seven games before having a conversation ‘when it’s time’. Newcastle’s final seven games have got off to the worst possible start with a defeat against a side with nothing to play for, who played in Europe a few days earlier, made several big changes, have lost several key players and have a manager half out of the door.
The pressure is building on Howe externally, but that doesn’t match the internal feeling at the club. The noise surrounding Howe’s future is that the man himself will have a big say on whether he stays at Newcastle or not.
For now, Howe is still looking to end the season strong and prepare for next season.
“There have certainly been no fallings out,” he said. “I’ve got a very good relationship with Ross [Wilson, sporting director] and David.
“We’re plotting to try and take the club forward in the smartest way possible. I’ve had really good support from both of them and they are the key figures I work with day to day at the club.
“We’re all totally aligned on what we need to do. The long-term prospects for the football club, I think, are really strong. But certainly these seasons we’ve experienced previously, we’re probably ahead [of schedule].
“Not all the forces are with us. We’re going to have to act really smart and try to out-perform the budget to hit the levels that everyone wants.”
Why Eddie Howe could stay at NUFC
When asked what he needs to stay at Newcastle beyond the summer, Howe added: “What do I need? Just that, I need support. Good working relationships with the people around me.
“A feeling of being able to express myself in the best way possible so you see the best version of myself. If I feel that, and the club feels that, then they’re getting the best manager they can from myself.
“Obviously, if that’s not working for whatever reason, on both sides, then it’s best for the football club… which is the most important thing in all of this, that is Newcastle United, not me or anybody else, it’s Newcastle. I will always reflect that in my decision making. I will put the club before anybody.”
Is Eddie Howe the ‘best version’ of himself?
But is Howe the ‘best version’ of himself right now? Last summer and chastening season that has followed will no doubt have taken its toll.
When asked directly if he felt like the best version of himself right now, Howe told The Gazette: “I think that's difficult for me to judge. It's a bit like, I'm sure you can have an opinion on yourself, but other people probably will judge that better.
“I think this season has been a great season in many ways. And I think in terms of learning and developing as players and as coaches, I'm sure there's, at the end of the season, a lot to unpack and to take. And I'm sure those experiences will make me better.
“As I say, I'm very reluctant to sort of give a straight answer to that on myself. Other people can do it, but I certainly don't think this season will harm me in the sense of my growth and development. If anything, it should help me evolve and improve.”
But will Howe evolve and improve at Newcastle? Only time will tell.
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