When it comes to signing players, Eddie Howe has got most things right as Newcastle United manager.
While there has been the odd blip and a couple of questions marks, the majority of Eddie Howe’s signings as Newcastle United manager have delivered.
Chris Wood served a purpose, even if the goals did not flow as regularly as hoped. But he played an important role during a tough period, and only ended up costing the club £10million once he was sold to Nottingham Forest.
Matt Targett’s permanent move has not gone to plan, while Sandro Tonali‘s first year as a Newcastle United player has been a disaster. He has been suspended for most of the season, but the hope is that he will make a major impression upon his return.
Even Lewis Hall is starting to prove his worth, and suddenly looks much more confident in a Newcastle United shirt after a tough start to life in the North East.
Then you have got the real success stories. Bruno Guimaraes, Alexander Isak, Sven Botman and Anthony Gordon have been spectacular, as have cheaper additions such as Kieran Trippier, Nick Pope and Dan Burn.
Eddie Howe tells Gary Neville what he does when Newcastle United are looking at a player
Newcastle will be hoping for more joy in the transfer market this summer, with a new sporting director set to arrive at St James’ Park very soon.
But whoever Newcastle appoint, whether it is Dougie Freedman or someone else, it appears that Eddie Howe will have the final say over incomings. And he has told Gary Neville on The Overlap podcast what he does with every player the club are considering signing.
“I’d say my actual role in everything isn’t totally different [to what it was at Bournemouth], really,” he said.
“At Bournemouth, in the very early days, we one scout who was unpaid, me and Jason. And that was it.
“Now we have a huge recruitment team, sporting directors – you name it, we’ve got it. But I still have to watch the players in detail before signing them. I’ve got to coach them, I’ve got to invest in them, I’ve got to take all the time to develop their games, I’ve got to know their games. And I’ve got to think they fit the style.
“My actual role in it hasn’t changed. A lot of the work behind it is more detailed.”
Neville then asked how does Howe judge a player’s personality, given how important that is.
Howe added: “The personality stuff is more references, word of mouth. Through my journey, I’ve met a lot of people and usually there will be a link to a club and there will be a detailed conversation on what they are like.”
That suggests why Newcastle United often sign players from the same agency
Eddie Howe leaves no stone unturned. If the club are interested in a player, he studies them to find out whether they are suitable for his team, how he can improve them and what they already excel at.
And he also does some research into what they are like as people, which explains why there does not appear to be any bad eggs at Newcastle United. There is a lot of unity within the squad, and that is a big reason why the Magpies have done so well under Howe.
And it also suggests why Newcastle often recruit players who have the same agency. That means Howe has an easy way into finding out what possible signings are like as people.
Harvey Barnes, Tino Livramento and Lewis Hall are all represented by the same agency, which is Wasserman, who interestingly also represent Eddie Howe. The same goes for Callum Wilson, Anthony Gordon, Jamaal Lascelles, Paul Dummett and Lewis Miley, who are represented by Unique Sports Group.
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