Newcastle United have confirmed the appointment of Steve McClaren as their new head coach today, and he is the long-term successor to Alan Pardew. The announcement came hot on the heels of the sacking of John Carver and Steve Stone and cleared the decks for an entirely new back-room staff and set-up at St. James’ Park.
The former England and Middlesbrough manager is best known on English shores for lifting the League Cup with ‘Boro in 2003/04. [Editor’s note: us English tend to pretend the ‘Wally with a Brolly‘ never happened, thus his Middlesbrough years are what he is known for].
Ironically, regarding Newcastle fans’ ire that they don’t try in cup competitions, it was Sir Bobby Robson’s resting of Alan Shearer in the earlier rounds of that competition that year against West Brom that saw an early Magpies exit.
After a difficult period with England during which he failed to qualify the nation for the Euro 2008 Championships, he experienced success abroad notably with FC Twente. Winning the Dutch Eredivisie with a certain Cheick Tioté in central midfield, he became the first man to win a top flight abroad since Sir Bobby Robson.
He returned to English football with Nottingham Forest, then Derby, after a stunted spell at FC Wolfsburg in Germany.
It was as assistant manager to Sir Alex Ferguson where he first made his reputation as one of the finest and most progressive young coaches in English football, though. The Red Devils won all three Premier League titles during his spell there and an historic treble in 1999.
Close friend and Gateshead manager, Malcolm Crosby, believes Newcastle have landed one of the best managers in the country:
‘Middlesbrough was his first manager’s role after being assistant at Man United and he’d done a brilliant job (League Cup winners and UEFA Cup final).
‘He had one of the best chairmen (Steve Gibson) you will ever get to work under and it was just unfortunate that the biggest job in the country came up.
‘If he had not taken that he would have ended up managing a Man United or Man City by now.’
He takes on one of the biggest jobs and greatest challenges in English football in the St. James’ Park hot seat and his experience with the pressure and media exposure of the England job in his time there will have served him well.
In his first ever interview on Sky, Newcastle owner, Mike Ashley, promised a new era at the club and the ambition to win a trophy or finish in the top four which he’d consider winning something and said The Magpies had the increased finance to achieve these aims. Furthermore, QPR top-gun Charlie Austin could be the club’s first signing on McClaren’s watch, especially after the forward exchanged Twitter banter with Geordie legend Alan Shearer last night about scoring records and the no. nine shirt.
Yet McClaren, who will bring in his own back-room staff in a sweeping of the decks, fresh approach that has gone down well with fans, will have his own ideas about who he wants to buy, along with good friend and executive super-scout Graham Carr and managing director Lee Charnley.
Newcastle fans will be hoping a new dawn is finally breaking on Tyneside.
Main image:
