Newcastle United manager Eddie Howe has reminded his squad that past achievements count for little as the club prepares for an important period in their season with stern October test lying ahead.
The Magpies head into October with four key fixtures starting away at Brighton on October 18, before hosting Benfica in the Champions League on October 22, Fulham in the league on October 25 and Tottenham Hotspur in the Carabao Cup on October 30.
While Eddie Howe’s side have steadied themselves after back-to-back wins over Union Saint-Gilloise and Nottingham Forest after an uneven start but the Amersham native would know how important this two-week spell would be at Tyneside.
The team sits mid-table but retains belief in closing the gap on the top four while pushing to advance from the Champions League group stage.
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This is what Eddie Howe said as Newcastle United prepare for an important period
Howe has reflected on his squad’s progress since taking charge, While Newcastle chief praised the consistency of his player over the past two years but urged them not to rest.
“The group of players we have is very special. They’ve done so well for me for a consistent period of time. They’ve represented the club really well in all sorts of different ways. But nothing stays the same,” he said [via Chronicle Live]
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"You always have to prove yourself again and again and again – that's the beauty of football, it's the beauty of a season starting again and we're well aware of that."
"What happened last year is now history and now we have to try to create more history and new history and we're determined to try to do that if we can,”
Newcastle ended a 70-year domestic trophy drought last season with a 2-1 win over Liverpool in the Carabao Cup.
"We'll give it our best shot. Beating Forest and Union SG was a big step forward just in returning our confidence levels to where they were last year."
"I think we’ve done really well at building on winning streaks and runs, and backing up performances with another one. "It’s what we’re going to have to do to be successful this year.
"The competition is so difficult. Forest came to us in our last game, put a lot of men behind the ball and made it very difficult."