Eddie Howe has left Newcastle United just hours after admitting he had lost control of transfers, while across the Premier League, Everton manager David Moyes maintains he has the final say on recruitment.
Howe's final admission
Speaking after a 4-1 defeat to Bristol City at Ashton Gate, Howe stated: “What will be, will be. We can’t control the forces that are at play here.” The 48-year-old later added: “There’s been a lot of upheaval at the football club with potentially more to come. I think there’s always reasons to be optimistic and that's very much my default setting.”
“I believe great things are possible every season with a real buzz of what’s ahead. I see no reasons to be any different this year.”
Despite winning the Carabao Cup in 2025, ending a 70-year trophy drought, Howe's reign at St James' Park ended on Thursday. According to The Athletic's David Ornstein, 38-year-old German Matthias Jaissle of Al Ahli is lined up as his replacement. Howe is understood to have told the club he wanted to go, informing the squad and staff on the flight back from Bristol.
Moyes' stance on recruitment
Evertonians will be watching with interest given Moyes' clear position. In January, ahead of a 1-0 win over Aston Villa, he said: “I’ve got the final say if we want to buy a player or we don’t want to buy a player. But I get told by my superiors how much we’ve got to spend and what we’ve got available and I have to work off those thoughts.”
Speaking exclusively to the ECHO in September 2024 for his Goodison Park: My Home series, Moyes outlined his approach: “Ultimately, I think the manager, maybe called ‘the head coach’ now, are the ones who are getting fired for it so if I’m going to get fired, I’m going to get fired because it’s players I sign or I choose to sign.”
“It’s how I play and not how I get told to play. You need to be able to do that. If it’s changed differently, then I can do that. If somebody turns around and says: ‘By the way, I’m signing the players for you,’ I can do that. But don’t be putting my name to everything then, everyone you bring in, and not taking responsibility.”
Everton's structure
Everton's football leadership includes technical director Nick Cox, director of scouting and recruitment James Smith, football strategy and analytics director Chris Howarth, and player trading lead Nick Hammond, under chief executive Angus Kinnear. Last summer, the club abandoned the director of football model used since 2016.
Howe will not face Everton in their pre-season friendly at Murrayfield on August 12.
