Newcastle boss Eddie Howe fires warning to Man City and Aston Villa

Eddie Howe is not prepared to accept the Premier League’s top six as an unattainable goal as he aspires to propel the team back into elite status. Once outsiders, Newcastle stormed to a remarkable fourth-placed finish two seasons past, echoing Aston Villa’s achievement last term.

Despite financial regulations throwing up new hurdles and a subsequent seventh-place finish after their Champions League return, Howe remains undeterred. His philosophy is clear: “I never see anything as a closed shop. It’s our job to try and achieve the most that we can and put no barriers on our levels or our expectations of ourselves internally and see what happens.”

Newcastle are set to face Aston Villa at the revered St James’ Park come Boxing Day, with the hosts just two points adrift of their sixth-placed rivals and sandwiched between Manchester City and the lingering shadows of Tottenham and Manchester United in the league standings. Addressing whether outside forces may wish to prevent his side from breaking the status quo, Howe conceded with a knowing grin: “I’m sure there’s people that don’t want that to happen again.

“But the beauty of the Premier League this year is that you never quite know what’s going to happen. Teams find it difficult to string consistent runs of results together – not just us.

“We have seen Nottingham Forest, Bournemouth and loads of teams have really strong seasons. The level of the Premier League has been really tight this year between all teams.

“I don’t think there’s a lot of difference between the top and bottom sides and that’s testament to the quality of every team in the league. There are no easy games and that makes a great spectacle.

“It makes a great league because you never know what’s going to happen. You never know what twists and turns are ahead, so it’s up to all of us to try and break into whatever group of teams, try to upset people and achieve success.”

Howe is also hopeful for the return of midfielder Joelinton, who missed the recent 4-0 win over Ipswich due to suspension after sustaining facial injuries in the Carabao Cup quarter-final victory against Brentford. Looking ahead, Newcastle have a historical advantage as Aston Villa have not secured a win at St James’ Park since April 2005 – a streak spanning 16 games with 10 losses.

Despite this, Howe remains cautious about their upcoming match, especially given Villa’s recent triumph over City. He remarked on the challenge posed by Unai Emery’s team: “The way Unai gets his teams to play, their style is very difficult to play against, very well coached, very well drilled. We expect a good game.”