Shay Given has revealed that Eddie Howe told him that he had not seen much of the city of Newcastle yet because the Magpies' head coach has been working 'morning, noon and night'.
Howe set the tone for what was to come by arriving at Newcastle' United's training ground with his staff when it was still dark on their first day together last November. Howe has since been the first one in each day at around 6.20am to make the absolute most of the time at his disposal.
That work ethic has been crucial to Newcastle's turnaround this season after Howe took over a side low on confidence in the relegation zone who had failed to even win a game. Howe went on to lead Newcastle to an 11th-placed finish following a run of 12 victories, three draws and five defeats in the second half of the campaign.
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Given how much time Howe has spent at the training ground - the head coach's family are still in the process of moving up - the 44-year-old has only really had the chance to familiarise himself with his surroundings rather than exploring them properly. Given actually asked Howe about that while on punditry duty for BT Sport for Newcastle's game against Liverpool at St James' Park last month after spending nearly 12 years on Tyneside himself.
"Behind the scenes, he was working morning, noon and night," Given told Premier League Productions. "I was up there a few weeks ago and I asked him what he thought of Newcastle as a city and he goes he hasn't really seen any of the city because he has been at the training ground when it's dark in the morning and, by the time he leaves, it's dark again.
"Him and his coaching staff are putting in the hard hours, putting in the hard graft, and, all the ingredients mixed together, I think he's got the blend right."
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