Eddie Howe finally set for Celtic Park bow as Newcastle United deploy Adidas contact book with summer pay-off
Eddie Howe is finally set to take his place on the Celtic Park touchline this summer – four years after his dramatic Hoops move collapse.
According to the IPaper, Newcastle United are heading for Glasgow for a pre season friendly against Brendan Rodgers’ side ahead of next term. It will be their first clash at Parkhead since 2004 and it comes two years on from facing Rangers at Ibrox in pre season for Allan McGregor’s testimonial.
Both clubs have kits manufactured by Adidas and that has been a key player in this friendly clash penned in alongside their South Korean tour. It’s stated “The Magpies travelled to Japan last year and have tapped into contacts established through their tie-in with Adidas in an attempt to expand their global appeal.”
When Eddie Howe was almost Celtic boss
The reception Newcastle United’s manager will get is bound to be one of the game’s talking points. After the failed bid for 10 titles in a row had Neil Lennon lose his job, Celtic were closing in on a coup with Howe, who was still out of a job after stellar work with Bournemouth.
He held talks with club chiefs and it was at such an advanced stage that Celtic were forced to release a statement confirming a deal was off. It read at the time: “Following very positive and detailed discussions with Eddie Howe, with the belief that he would be an excellent candidate for the position of Celtic Manager, we allowed time for the process, given he’d previously made it clear he was not looking to return to management until this summer at the earliest.
“We can now confirm that Eddie will not be joining the Club, for reasons outwith both his and Celtic’s control. We wish Eddie success for the future. As part of the ongoing process we have engaged with a number of candidates. We fully appreciate our fans will be seeking clarity on this matter and we aim, very shortly, to announce the appointment of a Manager with the quality and desire to take Celtic forward and bring further success to our supporters.”
Newcastle boss on Hoops
It all worked out for both parties, Celtic going on to hire Ange Postecoglou who won five out of six trophies available domestically over two seasons, paving a road for Brendan Rodgers to win at will in his second reign so far. Howe meanwhile has guided a Newcastle United revolution under new ownership from the middle east and won the Carabao Cup this campaign to cement his status as a Toon hero.
He told talkSPORT last year: “During that period that I’d had out, I’d had a few job offers, but I’d said I’m not considering anything to a year. That year had passed and Celtic came up and I was immediately attracted to the job. I thought, ‘Wow, what an opportunity. What a football club’. Great people as well. The people I met were unbelievable. So there was no downside for me, but I had to get my staff together.
“For me, if I was to go into a football club, I could have gone in on my own and worked with the staff that are there. I felt I needed to go at my strongest. My strongest would have been with my team, so that’s Jason Tindall, Steven Purchase, Simon Weatherstone, and Dan Hodges. These are important people to me.
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