Eddie Howe has admitted that the spirit Newcastle United players have shown this season is up there with the most 'special' teams he has ever managed.
Howe took charge of a side who were low on confidence, without a win and languishing in 19th place in the table last November. Although Howe went on to end that winless run a few weeks later, against Burnley, no team had ever stayed up in the Premier League after failing to win any of their opening 14 league games.
Some smart business in January undoubtedly helped - Kieran Trippier, Chris Wood, Bruno Guimaraes, Dan Burn and Matt Targett all played their part - but the work ethic and togetherness that Howe and his staff fostered was also at the heart of Newcastle's turnaround. Having won just one game in the first half of the campaign, Newcastle went on to finish the season in 11th with their best points total in eight years after picking up 39 points in the second half of the campaign alone.
