Eddie Howe has insisted Newcastle United players do not have sights set on the beach for their summer holidays - despite a strong-worded interview from ex-manager Sam Allardyce.
Big Sam was one of a number of pundits who steamed in on Newcastle after they were beaten 5-1 at Tottenham Hotspur at the weekend. But Howe says his players care too much about their jobs to switch off. Newcastle have 31 points in the bag, three more than was needed to stay up last season, and Allardyce insisted Toon stars think they're safe.
Howe told Chronicle Live: "I am not going to criticise Sam's comments - he is welcome to his opinion. But absolutely not. Absolutely, categorically not. "If you see how we train and the detail given to the training sessions and the care we have to the players.
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"I know looking at the players how much they care. We have a great group we really do. They care passionately about performances. We were all upset and disappointed with what we delivered on Sunday. So absolutely not, I will knock that back as strongly as I can."
Allardyce had said: "They think they are safe. They have switched off. Gone about where are they going to book their holidays now and I think that’s really bad. We are talking about recruitment. The business they have done in January has saved the football club.
"That’s new players coming in, the manager handling them, getting them to play better and going on an unbeaten run. "But they switched off against Tottenham. It’s the manager’s job to put them on track and give them the biggest telling off since he has been here. "It’s an embarrassment that."
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