Eddie Howe Next England Manager Odds: Would Newcastle’s boss be tempted by England?

After the departure of Gareth Southgate following defeat in the Euro 2024 final, England are looking for a new manager for their national team for the first time in eight years. Southgate enjoyed the most sustained period of success of any Three Lions manager, but now the FA are searching for his successor.

Whoever his replacement is, it’s not going to be an easy task. But here at Betfred Insights we have taken a detailed look at the contenders at the top of the market, and assessed their chance of getting the England job. Top of the list at the moment, is Newcastle United manager Eddie Howe. But could he actually ditch the Magpies to take on the biggest job in English football?

Howe is an interesting proposition, and one worthy of conversation when it comes to the vacant England manager role. Whether you agree with the thought process behind it, the fact that he is English will work in his favour, and he is one of only a handful of English gaffers that could even be considered for the role. 

That is perhaps a poor reflection of the coaching system in England, which clearly has its flaws. Despite the progression of young talent in this country, in terms of elite-level coaches, we are still far behind the likes of Spain. An English manager still hasn’t won the Premier League, and we are now entering the 33rd season of the rebranded top flight. 

That’s pretty telling, but let’s move back to Howe, and his credentials. Unlike Southgate, he has plenty of experience in club football, and has been a massive success at both Bournemouth and Newcastle. Having taken the Cherries from the brink of extinction to League 1, he left for Burnley, but returned to the south coast to be part of Bournemouth's rise, with the club having reached the Championship in his absence. 

A title-winning season followed the year after and his close relationship with Jason Tindall worked wonders for that small south coast club. The challenge having got them there, was keeping Bournemouth in the Premier League, and Howe managed to stay above the dotted line for four consecutive seasons, before relegation in 2020. He departed the club he started playing for in 1994, and was snapped up by Newcastle United over a year later. 

Despite the multiple promotions and relative success with Bournemouth, it has been the Newcastle job that has earned him the most plaudits. They were a mess when he came in for Steve Bruce, but with the help of new ownership, he - along with his old pal Tindall - have helped transform the club. He remarkably guided them to Champions League football for the first time in 20 years in his first full season, and he took them to the EFL Cup final at Wembley. 

In his latest campaign, they finished seventh, but Newcastle did enjoy a famous 4-1 win over PSG at St James’ Park - the sort of night the Geordies have been dreaming of for decades. There’s absolutely no doubt that on paper, Howe is more than qualified for the England job, but like several others on this list, he has no experience of international management, and it is a completely different ball game. 

Things at Newcastle also seem to be changing, with Amanda Staveley and her husband Mehrdad Ghodoussi both leaving the club this summer. Staveley was a huge supporter of Howe, and without her involvement, the Englishman has lost a close ally. Howe may also be a victim of his own success at Newcastle, if he fails to get them close to the top four again this term. 

Next England Manager Odds

Expectations have been raised, but despite their wealth Newcastle haven’t torn apart the transfer market as we expected - due to the limitations of FFP. So perhaps this is the time for Howe to move on. He is loved by Newcastle fans, but the owners could dispose of him at any point, and bring in a manager with a bigger worldwide reputation. Zinedine Zidane, Mauricio Pochettino and Jurgen Klopp are all out of a job right now and their reputations loom large.

Howe may fancy this, and the timing may just work for both parties. However, he will have to work on his handling of the media, and reaction to major scrutiny, if he is to take this job. Southgate was a master in keeping the press under control, but also for standing up for what he believed in and representing the country in the right way. Under Southgate’s reign, England faced horrendous racism in Bulgaria, and took the knee to stand against racism at Euro 2020.

They faced criticism for doing so, but the reaction to the penalty shootout loss to Italy proved why it was needed. Marcus Rashford fought for free school meals and both Southgate and his team truly stood for something. Howe, meanwhile, refused to comment on anything to do with Saudi Arabia after PIF’s takeover, claiming he was just a football manager who wanted to focus on football. If you are England manager, I’m afraid that’s not good enough. 

Southgate has shown that the England manager has to represent the nation. Howe has all the credentials to be a successful candidate on the pitch and the FA may try and tempt him away from Newcastle, so his place as one of the favourites is deserved - but will he want to jack in the Newcastle project for the most scrutinised job in football? I’m not so sure. 

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