Shay Given speaks out - Honest on Eddie Howe's shock Newcastle United exit

Former Newcastle United goalkeeper Shay Given believes Eddie Howe still has ‘a long future in the game’ following his exit from St James Park - and predicted one high-profile role could provide him with his next job in football.

Howe’s five-year reign on Tyneside officially came to a close on Friday evening as he reflected on a highly-successful spell that saw the former Bournemouth manager end the Magpies 70-year wait for major domestic silverware and secure Champions League on two separate occasions.

However, a defeat at Fulham on the final day of last season with go down as the last competitive fixture of Howe’s reign after he mutually agreed to bring an end to his time in charge. Speculation has linked the now-former Magpies boss with a role as England manager on a number of occasions and Given believes Howe ‘ticks all of the boxes’ to succeed Thomas Tuchel when his time in charge of the Three Lions comes to a close.

Speaking to Boyle Sports, who offer the latest football odds, the former Magpies keeper said: “Eddie Howe as the next England manager? I think he ticks all the boxes, doesn’t he. He’ll be strongly linked with it. Obviously, Thomas Tuchel has signed a new contract before the World Cup and I wouldn’t have thought his position was in doubt, although England fans might have had other ideas the morning after the Argentina game.

“From everything I’ve heard, it could well be that Eddie wants to take a step back and get away from it all now to recharge his batteries and I wouldn't be surprised if he has some time out, maybe a year off out of the game. He's got a long future ahead of him in the game but I'm sure Eddie has aspirations of one day being England manager. Will that desire be in 12 months or five years? Only Eddie knows the answer to that one.”

‘My Instinct’ - Shay Given

Howe was linked with a managerial vacancy at Celtic prior to his arrival at Newcastle in November 2021 - and boyhood Hoops fan Given has admitted he would love to see Howe move north of the border at some point in his career.

He said: “I grew up as a Celtic fan so I’d love to see Eddie Howe end up at Celtic once Martin O’Neill finishes up but I don’t know if that’s an avenue he would consider now. His stock is really high now and my instinct is that Eddie’s next job will be at one of the big jobs in the Premier League or in Europe.

“I’m sure Celtic would love to have him, and they’d snap his hands off to bring him up to Glasgow if he made any noises about it, but I think there will be other opportunities that Eddie may be looking at, and you’d suspect he’d be looking for a club where he can build without selling his best players. That means the very biggest clubs because they have all the financial power.”

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