Newcastle United boss Eddie Howe was quick to play down any references linking him with Sir Alex Ferguson over the weekend.
After getting through the 2-0 win over Brentford, Howe was asked about the Fergie references from co-owners Amanda Staveley and Mehrdad Ghodoussi who spoke of a long-term Manchester United style project in which they see Howe at the centre of it all.
The Ripon financier's comments are backed up by quotes from last year from Ferguson himself who said in 2021: "On young managers, Eddie Howe had a great period at Bournemouth, for a young manager.
"I think he did very well even though he's relegated it doesn't mean to say he's not a good manager, I think he is a good manager."
Yet Howe wasn't getting carried away at the Community Stadium, far from it - and it isn't in his nature to do so.
Ego doesn't seem to come into it for Howe, or at least he hasn't displayed that as Newcastle head coach so far.
The Magpies have had previous managers who have been driven by ego before such as Ruud Gullit and arguably Alan Pardew who served up mixed results.
Then you have former bosses who tried to go about their business like Chris Hughton who used to conduct his interviews in a low-key manner and tried his best to avoid any controversy when and where possible.
Manager of the month contender Howe borrowed one of Fergie's phrases in his Press conference after the game on Saturday when he said: "If you can't win - don't lose."
It is an approach that could serve Newcastle very well as they close in on survival and it may have even been a precursor to this weekend's encounter with Brighton & Hove Albion.
Howe said: "It is just important that we keep performing well and keep getting points.
"If you can't win - don't lose.
"The mentality in the squad, the spirit, is really really good.
"We know we have to keep that and keep giving our all to every match."
And when asked his own view on the Ferguson comparisons, Howe said: "I'm taking it the opposite way, taking very small steps.
"For me, the focus is getting enough points to stay in the division and I'm not looking anything beyond that.
"That doesn't mean I am not looking at the football club and making good decisions for that.
"I appreciate the words but for me the next game and making sure we have enough points to stay in the division."
And with that Howe was off to savour the result at Brentford for 24 hours before starting preparations for the crunch clash against Brighton at St James' Park.
Win that one and Newcastle may need just three wins from their remaining fixtures to ensure survival - something unthinkable just a few weeks ago.
