Newcastle boss Eddie Howe sent congratulations to his players from his hospital bed after watching them dismantle Manchester United to go fourth in the Premier League table.
The 47-year-old was admitted on Friday evening after being unwell for several days and was undergoing tests as his assistant Jason Tindall and Graeme Jones prepared the team for a key game.
In the event, the Magpies roared to a 4-1 victory at St James’ Park in Howe’s absence, but he was with them in spirit.
Asked if he had spoken to his former Bournemouth team-mate, Tindall said: “Yes, I had a message from him just before I came to do the press, congratulating the team on the performance and work from everybody.
“He was able to watch the game and I’m sure that performance will have put a smile on his face.”
Tindall admitted he did not know if he would still be in charge for Wednesday’s home clash with Crystal Palace – in which victory would see Newcastle climb above Nottingham Forest into third – but he was proud of the way the players coped without Howe.
He said: “He was hugely missed, certainly for me. It’s only the second time in 17 years that we’ve not been side by side and I did miss him.
Jason Tindall 🗣️
"I''ve had a message from Eddie. He managed to watch the game which is great. He sent a message to congratulate the team and staff on the performance. It was a performance for him."
Get well soon, gaffer! 🖤🤍 pic.twitter.com/uzQqrxerHB
— Newcastle United (@NUFC) April 13, 2025
“You miss your leader when he’s not there, but testament and credit to everybody else to be able to step into those shoes – big shoes to fill.
“He’s one of the best around and credit to everybody to be able to go out and deliver the performance that they did. I’m sure he’ll be proud of that.”
The Magpies looked to be on their way when Sandro Tonali fired them into a 24th-minute lead, but Alejandro Garnacho’s equally sweet finish sent the sides in level at the break.
However, Harvey Barnes restored the lead within four minutes of the restart and then stretched it with 64 minutes gone before skipper Bruno Guimaraes capitalised on an error by goalkeeper Altay Bayindir – who was making his Premier League debut in place of the dropped Andre Onana – to wrap up a comprehensive victory.
For Manchester United boss Ruben Amorim, it proved a sobering afternoon on Tyneside as his raft of changes, with Thursday night’s Europa League quarter-final second-leg clash with Lyon in mind, failed to pay dividends.
Asked if he had any regrets over his selection, Amorim, who lost Joshua Zirkzee to a hamstring injury shortly after the break, said: “No, nothing, nothing because we made mistakes and they were better. Even if we put a different XI, we don’t know the result.
“But then we had to make choices and we played three days ago. You could see with Josh, he was fresh, but he had some problem, so sometimes we need to make choices and we don’t know the result even with a different XI.”
Asked further if Onana could return against the French side, he replied: “You guys have to wait. We are going to start the next week tomorrow and then I am going to choose the best starting XI for the next one.”
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