Newcastle’s owners are reportedly looking for a La Liga manager to replace Eddie Howe.
Last season, Howe led Newcastle to the Carabao Cup and fourth place in the Premier League, securing the club’s first Champions League berth in two decades.
However, their journey into European football’s elite was brief, as they finished bottom of a group that contained Paris Saint-Germain, Borussia Dortmund, and AC Milan, and were knocked out of the Carabao Cup in the quarter-final stage by Chelsea.
Meanwhile, an injury crisis has seen Newcastle finish the year with seven defeats in eight games across all competitions. Furthermore, four defeats in their previous five Premier League matches have dropped the club to ninth in the table, 11 points behind the Champions League places.
As a result, Howe’s position at Newcastle looks perilous, and the club’s owners are now considering replacing the former Bournemouth manager with Girona manager Michel Sanchez, according to Spanish daily Marca.
Sanchez led Girona to La Liga promotion in his debut season in charge before taking the Catalan club to 10th position last season. Girona, on the other hand, has exceeded all predictions this season and is level on points with Real Madrid at the top of La Liga.
Girona manager Michel has attracted the interest of several of Europe’s top clubs as a result of the club’s overperformance.
Barcelona is reportedly mulling a move for the former Rayo Vallecano manager as a replacement for Xavi, while Michel may be a plausible candidate for Pep Guardiola as Girona is controlled by the same holding firm that controls Manchester City.
However, according to Marca, the Newcastle owners are “looking very seriously” at turning over the keys to Michel.
