Eddie Howe is expected to leave his role as Newcastle head coach less than a month before the start of the Premier League season.

Howe’s impending departure was reported by outlets including the BBC and the Press Association on Thursday.

He has been in charge of Newcastle for nearly five years and during that time ended the Saudi-backed club’s decades-long wait for silverware.

Howe took charge of Newcastle’s 4-1 preseason friendly loss to Bristol City on Wednesday, which may have been a pointer to a difficult campaign ahead following departures of star players this summer.

Anthony Gordon and Sandro Tonali have left during this transfer window and there is speculation captain Bruno Guimaraes could follow.

Last year Newcastle sold top scorer Alexander Isak, finished the season in 12th and missed out on Champions League qualification.

Despite being bought by Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund in 2021, Newcastle has not been able to emulate the Abu Dhabi-backed Manchester City or Qatar-backed Paris Saint-Germain and become a dominant force in European soccer.

Howe, who was hired in November 2021, twice led the club to Champions League qualification and won the English League Cup last year to end the club’s 70-year wait for a major domestic trophy.

But financial rules have restricted Newcastle’s Saudi backers from spending as lavishly as City and PSG and, instead, it has had to sell top players to reinvest in the squad.

___

James Robson is at https://x.com/jamesalanrobson

___

AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer