'100%' - Eddie Howe will return to manage Newcastle United before the end of the season - on one condition

A Newcastle club statement confirmed that Howe would miss the upcoming Premier League matches against Crystal Palace and Aston Villa after being hospitalised with pneumonia.

But that is not to say Howe will be back in the dugout for Newcastle’s next game against Ipswich Town at St James’ Park.

NHS guidance states ‘most people’ can recover from pneumonia in two to four weeks. But the intense nature of Howe’s role and pressure to deliver results at the business end of the Premier League season mean his health will be assessed on a day-to-day basis with no specific timeframe for a return.

Both Howe and assistant manager Jason Tindall have stated they want to be back working together ‘as soon as possible’, following a period of recovery.

Jason Tindall provides Eddie Howe health update

Tindall admitted he has had ‘minimal dialogue’ with Howe since the Newcastle head coach was admitted to hospital on Friday evening. Howe won’t play an active role in the upcoming matches against Palace or Aston Villa, with Tindall set to continue to take charge of training and matches until further notice.

“We've had minimal dialogue together since that announcement, so as we know, he's in the best possible hands and he'll be back as soon as he feels he's ready to come back and 100% to lead the team,” Tindall said in his pre-match press conference. “Of course, as we know, your health is the most important thing and that's why it's so important that when Eddie does decide to come back, he comes back and is able to lead the team as we know he does, day in day out and he's fully recovered and I'm sure he will do. And as I said, he's in the best possible hands right now.”

When will Eddie Howe be back for Newcastle United?

Newcastle have seven games left to play in their Premier League season and currently sit fifth in the table. A result against Palace would see them move up to third and consolidate their place in the Champions League qualification places.

When asked when Howe could be back, Tindall replied: “No exact time frame, you know that's something that will be assessed day by day and you know certainly not a question that I can answer, as we said he's in the best possible hands possible in the hospital and everything will be guided by them and himself and it'll just be a day-by-day thing.

“He'll only come back when he's ready to come back and when he feels he's ready to come back under the guidance of the people that's taking care of him.”

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Jason Tindall’s managerial aspirations

Tindall previously took charge of AFC Bournemouth following Howe’s departure in 2020 but lasted just eight months in the role. In 2021 he reunited with Howe as his assistant at Newcastle and has no plans of returning to management despite his current spell in charge of first-team duties at Newcastle.

“It's never been my intention [to be a manager],” Tindall admitted. “It's not what I wanted even at that time, it wasn't and I think I made that clear. It was just at a time, the circumstances, the manager needed a break and wasn't sure what his next chapter would be, whether he'd come back into management or whether that would be it at that time. 

“So the opportunity come sort of my way and at that time it was an opportunity that I felt probably I couldn't sort of turn down but it's certainly not something that I've got in mind that I want to do. I'm happy in my role, we've worked together for so long now and worked well and closely and that's something that I want to continue to do.”

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