Newcastle United manager Eddie Howe admits he 'would step aside' if he feels he is not the right man for the job

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Newcastle United manager Eddie Howe admitted he "would step aside" at St James' Park if he felt he was no longer the correct person to lead the club. Newcastle have lost their last three league games, while they have just one win in eight in all competitions. Despite the poor run, Howe said he has "no doubt" that he remains the right man for the job ahead of The Magpies' trip to Tottenham Hotspur.

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Eddie Howe has said he would "step aside" if he did not think he was the right person to manage Newcastle United.

The Magpies were booed off the pitch at St James’ Park on Saturday following their 3-2 loss against Brentford, their third league defeat on the spin.

A disheartened Howe admitted at full-time that he is "not doing [his] job well enough at the moment", with his side now 12th in the table and due to face Tottenham Hotspur on Tuesday, live on TNT Sports and discovery+.

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But speaking ahead of Newcastle’s trip to north London, the head coach said there is "no doubt in [his] mind" that he remains the right man for the job.

"The club is always No. 1 and, from my perspective, I will always act in the best interests of the club," Howe told reporters.

"I’ve got to think, am I the right person to do the job? Am I giving value, and am I helping the players? Am I the right person to get results ultimately?

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"As long as I feel that in my heart and in my spirit, [that] my desire and my motivation levels are as high as they have ever been… that’s the key question I always have to ask myself.

"There’s no doubt in my mind [that I am] and that’s why I’m sat here. If there was, then I wouldn’t be because, as I said, the club’s the most important thing.

"I’d never put myself before the club if I didn’t think I was the correct man to take the team forward, and I could give the players what they need, then I would step aside and let someone else do it."

Howe reportedly retains the backing of the board at St James’ Park, with credit in the bank after last season’s Carabao Cup triumph ended the club's seven-decade wait for a major domestic trophy.

The 48-year-old has also led The Magpies into the UEFA Champions League on two occasions, including for this year’s edition, with his side favourites to progress past Qarabag and into the last 16.

But Newcastle have just one win in their last eight games in all competitions, and Howe admitted he was going through one of the toughest periods of his tenure.

However, the Englishman knows that a couple of wins can change the mood.

"Those experiences I have been through countless times before stand me in good stead for this moment," he said.

"The collective spirit is what we're after. We're after the collective fight from all the players and if you have that resolve within the group, you can do amazing things again, so it can turn very quickly.

"The momentum is against us at the moment. We have to swing it back and then the world can look a very different place within a couple of games."

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