Former Newcastle United goalkeeper Shay Given believes manager Eddie Howe is “the right person” to be in charge at Newcastle, and that he and his players would become “heroes” if they were to win silverware with the club.
Speaking on BBC Radio 5 Live Breakfast ahead of Wednesday’s Carabao Cup tie with Chelsea, Given spoke about the pressure Eddie Howe is under.
“Every Premier League manager is under pressure after a couple of bad results,” he said.
“But, I don’t think Eddie comes under that bracket, I really don’t – I think he is Newcastle for the long-term.
“I think the owners have a lot of time and respect for Eddie. It was a frustrating summer and Eddie maybe didn’t get the players that he wanted in the transfer window and that’s been a frustration for fans and anyone connected to the club.
“He hasn’t had the supply, Guehi was probably the big one in the summer – he really wanted him in, but couldn’t get the deal done. I thought they should have a plan B in place, but they didn’t.
“It’s just frustrating this season because you roll back 12 months and there was Champions League football in Paris, Dortmund and Milan and now they’re mid table.
“I don’t think it’s time for panic, with Eddie at the helm we’ve got the right person, he just needs to get back to winning ways and the club will be fine.”
Given believes tonight’s game with Chelsea is “a huge game” for the club.
He added: “They need to be really focused on the cup competitions, obviously there’s no chance of winning the league this season.
“The cup competitions, especially tonight at home under the lights, the place will be absolutely rocking – they have to use the crowd and atmosphere.
“This group of players know silverware is the aim, if Eddie Howe and his team can do that, they’ll be heroes for a long time.”