Eddie Howe reveals Liverpool addition who's made 'big impact' at Newcastle as Klopp shows class

Eddie Howe has revealed that coach analyst Mark Leyland has made a 'big impact' since joining the club from Liverpool as Jurgen Klopp jokingly warned his former colleague 'we play a completely different team' now.

Leyland, of course, has been helping to plot the downfall of his former employers this week as quadruple chasing Liverpool travel to St James' Park to face Newcastle on Saturday. It certainly won't be the first time that Leyland's inside knowledge of Liverpool will be tapped into by Newcastle and Klopp and assistant Pep Lijnders even joked with the Scouser about that prospect ahead of the reverse fixture earlier this season.

Klopp did not want to lose Leyland last December but, tellingly, the Liverpool boss did not stand in his way or force him to serve a lengthy notice period. The club's former head of post-match and elite player development analysis was even given a round of applause by players and staff at the training ground on his last day, which shows how well-regarded he was.

Howe already knew about Leyland's eye for detail, having worked with the analyst at Burnley, where he produced live match, opposition and post-match analysis, and the head coach was keen to reunite with his former colleague at Newcastle. Leyland had effectively hit a glass ceiling at Liverpool so jumped at the chance to assist with the implementation of training and coaching at Newcastle and his influence has been felt behind the scenes.

"Like all my staff, he's had a big impact," Howe told reporters ahead of the Liverpool game. "He's played a huge part in what we've done this season.

"He's one of a number of people behind the scenes that have put a tireless amount of work in to try and improve the team. We love him to bits and