Rob Lee says that the season ahead reminds him of the Kevin Keegan era at St James' Park as Eddie Howe and his players start a new campaign in earnest. Lee has given his seal of approval to the former AFC Bournemouth chief ahead of a big season.
Lee knows how the good times roll on Tyneside after helping turn Newcastle from a Second Division side into European competitors. Speaking about the prospects ahead under Howe, Lee said: “There was probably more expectation [at Newcastle] when Bobby Robson came in after Ruud Gullit, but yes for me it compares to when Kevin Keegan was there.
“They put season tickets up for sale the other week and there were queues going all the way round St James’ Park trying to get them. I remember when I joined Newcastle, they were locking out 5,000, 10,000 people every week. They just seem to be very optimistic about the way the club is run, the manager they have got in, the players they’re buying, and it seems to be after 14 years of nothingness really that they are moving in the right direction.
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“When Kevin was there and Sir John Hall was running the club, they always kept the Newcastle fans informed. We had 3,000 people watching our training sessions under Keegan. It wasn’t like it is now where they lock people out. He wanted the fans in. He had no secrets. When he sold Andy Cole he went onto the steps of St James’ and explained his reasons why. All the fans want in Newcastle is to be included and to be told what’s going on. They haven’t had that for a long time and they’re getting that now.”
Lee also compared Howe with his old boss Keegan. And admits he likes what he sees, the former England skipper says Howe has done a great job so far.
He said: "I knew Eddie Howe was a good manager. He did it at Bournemouth. I think people maybe doubted him when he went to Burnley.
"He struggled a little bit, but then came back to Bournemouth. People maybe saw Burnley as a bit of a failure and that he could only do it at Bournemouth with everything he knows.
"Going to Newcastle which is a huge football club and comes with huge things on and off the pitch that you have to deal with, I think he has surprised a lot of people."
Lee definitely feels that Howe has proved he can deal with the players and the big club atmosphere in the city.
He said: "You have to be able to deal with the fans, you have to be able to deal with the players – and big players. "He’s dealt with that fantastically well.
"You speak to most of the players now and they love him. They love the way he trains, and they seem to be enjoying their football. I was always taught that if you’re enjoying your football, nine times out of ten you will play well.
“I don’t see why he can’t take Newcastle all the way to where they want to be. I think this will be a big season for him and we’ll certainly know more because when he took over I think we were bottom of the league by a million miles and hadn’t won in 14 games, so he did a fantastic job in keeping the club up. Now there are more expectations. I think we finished 11 th , but he could have finished fourth from bottom and it would have been success. Now Newcastle fans expect to finish in the top ten at least and they want us to go for Europe, which is a big ask.”
Rob Lee was talking to Sky Bet about the Sky Bet Fan Hope Survey, a poll of over 2500 fans on their hopes and expectations ahead of the new season. To read more from Lee, and to take the survey, visit the Sky Bet Start of Season Hub.
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