Eddie Howe is "absolutely confident" he can save Newcastle United from relegation

Eddie Howe has spoken for the first time as Newcastle United's Head Coach.

The former Bournemouth manager spoke at a press conference, following the announcement on Monday that he would be coaching the Magpies.

"I had a really good first day, enjoyed it thoroughly. Looking forward to what is to come", said Howe.

"It feels fantastic to be head coach of Newcastle. I’m absolutely honoured, privileged. It’s an incredible moment in my life. It felt like a perfect fit for me."

"A club of such rich history, traditions, huge supporter base. I feel really privileged to be here and very grateful for the opportunity."

"We've had some really good conversations, I've been very very impressed about the vision of the club. To be honest, I haven't delved into that too much because it's all about the short term.

"The aim is to stay in the league and everything else can wait for another day."

Howe will he save them from relegation?

It is hard to ignore the position Newcastle find themselves in - 19th in the league 11 games in, with not a single win to their name.

Fears of relegation are being felt across the fanbase, but Howe has said he is committed to making sure Newcastle remain in the top flight.

The new Head Coach said: "I'm absolutely confident that we can, but I make no promises on that.

"All I can do is lead the club to the best of my abilities. I will give everything to the job, I will commit 100% every single day to try and bring success to Newcastle.

"I believe we have the ability within the squad to achieve that aim, but it's going to take a lot of hard work and sacrifice."

Eddie said that his focus will remain on the current team and their game against Brentford - he says that the January transfer window is not his main priority.

Howe described his choice to come to Newcastle as "a football decision".

"A better manager than I was"

Since leaving Bournemouth in 2020, Eddie has been out a job and spent his time "re-educating" himself on the game, so that he could focus on "coming back better".

Howe spoke in the conference about how he took a year out from coaching to focus on improving himself and caring for his family, regardless of the jobs that became available.

"I sit here a better manager than I was", Howe said.

"My experience at Bournemouth was so unique, from the first season I had trying to keep the club in the football league to the existence of the club being under threat if we failed. That's huge pressure. That's a football club going out of existence, and I really felt that pressure. I lived it every day.

"What a great education as your first job and those principles have lasted with me till this point now."

Committing to the area

Howe confirmed that his family are moving up North to be with him at Newcastle and will commit to the area.

"With the hours I'm going to work if I didn't bring my family with me there's absolutely no chance I would ever see them so I don't want to be that kind of parent", Eddie said.

This is a live story, more to follow....

The story of the Newcastle United takeover:

First for all the latest news from across the UK every hour on Hits Radio on DAB, at hitsradio.co.uk and on the Rayo app.

• eddie howe
• NUFC