TalkSport pundit and ex-Premier League player Danny Murphy has tipped his former boss Roy Hodgson to take over at Newcastle United.
The new era for Newcastle United under the rule of the Saudi Arabian investors didn’t get off to a great start, as despite taking the lead inside the first two minutes, they fell to a 3-2 defeat to Tottenham Hotspur at St. James’ Park.
A lot of the talk in the buildup to the game surrounded the future of manager Steve Bruce, with some reports suggesting that he wouldn’t even be in charge by the time the game kicked off, which sparked a furious response from the United boss in his pre-match press conference.
And with a new manager reported to be in the offing, it has led to plenty of speculation as to who it could be.
Speaking about the matter on TalkSport, Murphy suggested that ex-England boss Hodgson, who this summer departed from Crystal Palace, should be the man to take over, noting that he has done similar tasks before at his previous clubs:
“I know for sure the players would like him and be on board with him, you can’t not. He’s been there, done it, he took Palace from an impossible position – they were in a much worse position than Newcastle, by the way – and kept them up comfortably.
“He knows what he’s doing, he’s been in many relegation fights [from his] time at Fulham, time at West Brom. He’s been there, done it. And of course, with his age and what Newcastle want to do, it is a short-term thing.”
TIF Thoughts on Danny Murphy’s comments about Roy Hodgson taking over at Newcastle United…
Would you take Hodgson at NUFC?
Yes
No
Murphy, who worked under Hodgson during his time at Fulham, where they undertook their own great escape back in 2008, is in a pretty good position to speak about the 74-year-old and his track record.
And it’s that track record with his work at West Bromwich Albion and Crystal Palace that arguably does make Hodgson the perfect candidate to take over at Newcastle United. All they really need to do is stay up for one season so that they can begin their ambitious plans for the future of the club as soon as possible rather than wasting a season in the Championship.
And whilst they might have a lot of money at their disposal, would a younger big-name manager want to take a risk on being associated with a relegation that sets the club back, especially if they haven’t gone through a relegation battle before? They are surely better off going with someone that they know has been there and done it in the past.
In other news: Insider drops interesting NUFC transfer claim, says 99-goal ace is ‘on their radar’ for January