Eddie Howe has declared that he is 'loving every second' of managing at the 'theatre' that is St James' Park - even if the Newcastle United head coach can't always enjoy the atmosphere.
Newcastle are back home following a run of four straight away games as the Magpies bid to bounce back against Wolves on Friday night following a 5-1 hammering at the hands of Spurs in the capital last weekend. Although Newcastle have lost their last three games on the road, it has been a very different story at home.
Newcastle have triumphed in their last three matches at St James' and Howe has picked up 62% of his points so far at home. In fact, Howe has only lost one game on Tyneside since taking charge of the black-and-whites and that was against champions Man City back in December.
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Perhaps, that strong record should not come as a surprise. Howe has enjoyed remarkable support at St James - fans in the Gallowgate were even singing his name at 4-0 down during the aforementioned game against City - and the Newcastle boss has made a conscious effort to recognise that backing by leading players and staff on a lao of appreciation after every game.
Following Sunday's defeat at Spurs, Howe was already looking ahead to the visit of Wolves and the head coach appealed to supporters to generate an 'intense' atmosphere for a spell of home fixtures that will go a long way to deciding Newcastle's fate this season. The clash against Wolves will be Howe's first Friday night game at Newcastle and the 44-year-old's first home match under the lights since that crucial 3-1 win against Everton last February.
It was after that victory against Everton that Kieran Trippier remarked that the atmosphere at St James' was 'something I've probably not experienced in my career'. Howe, in contrast, has only been able to savour such nights at the final whistle.
"It's a difficult one because, as you say, I'm so focused on the game," he told reporters. "You've got to remember, when you're managing the team, you're not looking around going, 'Isn't this amazing?' You're going, 'What do I need to do to help the team in this moment? Is there anything I can change or do to help improve our chances of winning the game?'
"You're sort of in concentration mode the whole match but at the end of it, you get that feeling of, 'Wow! What an atmosphere. What a brilliant place to play football.' It's like a theatre.
"I loved it as an away manager. There's not many grounds that I can say that about but, as a home manager, it takes on a whole new meaning and I'm loving every second of it."
Newcastle's owners, unsurprisingly, intend to exhaust every avenue to expand St James' rather than move away and build a new arena elsewhere in the city. Part-owner Mehrdad Ghodoussi previously went as far as to say that relocating would be like 'tearing your soul out'.
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