Eddie Howe is today being linked with a move to Premier League outfit Crystal Palace after veteran manager Roy Hodgson decided to bow out after a 45 year career. Howe, who left Bournemouth last summer, is the favourite to become the next Celtic manager with an announcement anticipated in the coming weeks.
There is a growing frustration amongst the Celtic support due to the time that it is taking to announce Howe and his backroom staff. Neil Lennon left his post nearly three months ago and in that time, there has been little by way of communication from the club that they had their man – except a generic email blast saying that they were trying to get the right man for the job.
Despite the fact that the favourite for the Selhurst Park gig is Frank Lampard, a few pundits have said that the Eagles may poach Howe if Celtic don’t act quickly to get their man. Although, it is interesting to revisit comments made by the former Cherries boss in 2020 when he voiced his concerns about taking a job in London, relating it back to the time he decided to swap Bournemouth for Burnley.
Speaking to The Coaches’ Voice in 2020, Howe’s comments made it very clearly that he wouldn’t be able to move to London and fully immerse himself in the job due to his connection to the South Coast.
Howe insists that given the nature of the job, he needs to move himself away from his comfort zone so that he can fully commit to the job. The manager said that he decided to take the Burnley job back in 2011 because of the location and this is something that may be applicable to his thinking at the moment.
“Burnley was far enough away for me to fully commit to the job. That was one of my worries, people would say go to London and you can come back at the weekends, it’s not too far and you can keep your life here.
“For me that was never an option, I think I learned from management that I was going to be 24/7 and I needed to commit and move my whole family to a new area. So Burnley attracted me on that side and also the fact there was a real challenge there.”
Howe didn’t have his intended impact at Burnley and left after the untimely death of his mother. He then went on to perform a minor miracle with Bournemouth, taking them to the Premier League and retaining their stay in the league well beyond the expectations of pundits. Howe’s side likely were only relegated due to the ghost goal between Sheffield United and Aston Villa, which .
In part, Howe will likely see the enormous challenge of taking Celtic from the doldrums of this season and attempting to recapture the highs of the 9IAR and Quadruple Treble years.
David Potter appeared as a guest on The Celtic History Podcast this afternoon (listen above). Throughout the episode, he discussed his latest publication and bequeathed listeners with some sensational stories about a man who ranks among the finest to ever pass through Parkhead’s gates.
The podcast is not to be missed. It is available on various platforms such as Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and Anchor FM.
To purchase your copy of the book, click on the image below.
