Newcastle football club, newly bought by the Saudi Arabia regime have finally appointed their first manager, Eddie Howe on two-and-a-half-year deal to take over at St James’ Park.
The 43-year-old British manager has been out of a job since leaving Bournemouth following their relegation from the Premier League two seasons ago, but on Monday, November 8, Howe was confirmed in a social media post.
‘It is a great honour to become head coach of a club with the stature and history of Newcastle United. It is a very proud day for me and my family,’ Howe said.
‘This is a wonderful opportunity, but there is also a lot of work ahead of us and I am eager to get onto the training ground to start working with the players.
‘I would like to thank the club’s owners for this opportunity and thank the club’s supporters for the incredible welcome they have already given me. I am very excited to begin our journey together.’
Last month the Saudi Arabia backed consortium bought over Newcastle for a whooping £305m .
Howe will be taking charge of the club with the world’s richest owners, Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund thought to be worth more than £700billion.
Unai Emery was at first the clearly favourite for the job – but the Spaniard rejected an approach and has stayed at Villarreal.
Club director Amanda Staveley said: ‘We have been incredibly impressed by Eddie through what has been a rigorous recruitment process.
‘As well as his obvious achievements with AFC Bournemouth, where he had a transformational impact, he is a passionate and dynamic coach who has clear ideas about taking this team and club forward.
‘He is a great fit for what we are trying to build here. We are delighted to welcome Eddie and his staff to St. James’ Park and very much look forward to working together towards our collective ambitions.’
Newcastle have not won in the league this season and are 19th, five points from safety
