Eddie Howe facing ‘difficult decisions’ in the summer as he preaches ‘evolution, not revolution’ at Newcastle

NEWCASTLE: Eddie Howe believes he has some difficult decisions ahead on the future of his Newcastle United squad as the head coach reiterated his evolution, not revolution summer mantra.

The Magpies were hammered 5-0 by Pep Guardiola's Manchester City on Sunday, hot off the back of a 1-0 home reverse against fellow title challengers Liverpool.

And while this sequence of results has seen many leap to the conclusion that the Newcastle squad needs a complete revamp to compete with the Premier League's current top two, Howe is not in that mindset.

“There’s a huge gap between us, Liverpool and Manchester City, but I would say there is the same gap for most of the clubs in the Premier League,” he said. “Now we have to try and close that gap through the seasons. That, I think, requires evolution, not revolution. You’ve got to be very careful you don’t change too much too quickly. We’re looking to improve every day and improve in every transfer window, but I think it has to be small gradual steps.

“There’s no magic wand, no quick fix. It’s hard work and obviously smart moves in trying to improve the team.”

Arab News understands the Magpies will look to sign at least five players this summer to refresh their squad, a group that has fought or flirted with relegation for much of their time since promotion in 2017.

Howe, in recent interviews, has focussed on the qualities of his current group, and his words could have been mistaken for a manager keen to retain almost every member of his 25-man Premier League squad.

That's not the case, as Howe now admits.

“Every summer I have been in management I have had difficult decisions to make at the end of a season. Players that you love and have a great relationship with sometimes