Newcastle not worried over England pursuing Eddie Howe to be new boss

Newcastle sporting director Paul Mitchell insists his club are not “scared” by the prospect of Eddie Howe being offered the England job but stressed that the Magpies head coach remains a central part of the Magpies’ evolving long-term strategy.

Lee Carsley will take charge of the national team for the first time on an interim basis against the Republic of Ireland on Saturday but Howe, who is held in high regard at the Football Association, remains one of the favourites to be appointed as permanent successor to Gareth Southgate.

Mitchell, who has been building his relationship with Howe since being appointed at St James’s Park in early July, said: “I’ve never been scared of interest in any of our staff members, especially our head coach, and especially from a level of organisation that the FA is.

“We want Eddie Howe as our head coach for as long as we can. But we recognise that we are on a journey, and we recognise his quality and his potential as well. I think it’s recognition of the two-and-a-half years he’s had here, and the job he did at Bournemouth.”

Mitchell has moved quickly to establish extensive daily communication with Howe, whom he said remains integral to identifying and pursuing the club’s transfer targets, despite the head coach having recently intimated that he has become less involved in the operational side of the business.

“He is a senior member of our team and I want Eddie to be able to feel like he’s doing the best job he possibly can,” added Mitchell.

We want Eddie Howe as our head coach for as long as we can. But we recognise that we are on a journey, and we recognise his quality and his potential as well. I think it’s recognition of the two-and-a-half years he’s had here, and the job he did at Bournemouth.

“Part of that responsibility is supplying him with the maximum tools to do his job, and I feel like I can deliver that, but it [is] really the start of our relationship and we’ve got to find that nice balance between who does what.

“Every single player we looked at (in the summer), Ed wanted to try to sign, or wanted to have an extensive conversation. There was no player where we got to a certain level of discussion… that he wasn’t part of the deciding and saying, ‘that’s the guy I want’.”

Mitchell proceeded to defend his club’s quiet close season in the transfer market, suggesting it is indicative of the fact that the days of excessive spending are over as they come to terms with the Premier League’s stringent profit and sustainability rules (PSR).

The Magpies have spent over £400million since they were taken over by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund in 2021, but this summer saw only a handful of relatively low-key arrivals as well as a high-profile failure to land Crystal Palace defender Marc Guehi.

Mitchell is adamant the club must develop a more patient strategy having run the significant risk of accruing a points deduction before the threat was mitigated by the late departures of Elliot Anderson and Yankuba Minteh.

“We got away with it (breaching PSR rules) by the skin of our teeth,” admitted Mitchell. “We need to make sure that we don’t end up back there any time soon, because we just survived.

“I don’t think anyone understood the impact PSR would have on people’s strategies or abilities to spend. Unless some adjustments are made (to the rules), that will have to be a real factor in all your considerations. Over a long period of time, we’re going to have to adjust tactically and strategically to this new challenge that we have.

“As custodians of the club we can’t just keep spending and spending because at some point that won’t enable the club to continue to facilitate its goals and I don’t think any Newcastle fan wants to see the club in the place where others were last season with docked points and financial penalties.”

Mitchell met Magpies chairman Yasir Al-Rumayyan prior to Sunday’s win over Tottenham that sustained their best Premier League start for 13 years, and says the Saudi chief is fully on board with the need to adopt a more patient policy towards achieving their long-term goals.

He (Al-Rumayyan) is as ambitious and enthused as ever,” added Mitchell. “He is super-ambitious and wants us to perform at the number one level – not only through the money we spend – he wants us to be the best in class across everything we do.

“I think he can see that the club is growing, but he’s smart enough to know that it’s moved very quickly over a very short period of time. He knows a higher over-arching framework and strategy is crucial to get where we want to get to. This is a longer term investment than being number one tomorrow.”