Not Gerrard Or Lampard But Fonseca Strong Candidate For Newcastle Coach

JAKARTA - Paulo Fonseca has become a strong candidate for head coach of Newcastle United after the Saudi-led consortium sacked coach Steve Bruce, Sky Sports reported on Thursday.

In addition to Fonseca, Eddie Howe and Lucian Favre are said to be potential coaches for clubs who are suddenly rich and reckoned with in the Premier League and are also expected to follow in the footsteps of Manchester City which has transformed into one of the Premier League giants.

The new owners of the club, currently handled by interim coach Graeme Jones, are reportedly in talks with Paulo Fonseca after sacking Steve Bruce yesterday.

As reported by Antara, Newcastle confirmed on Wednesday that the recruitment process for a new head coach is underway and it is reported that Fonseca, a former Roma coach and former Tottenham coach, is the strongest candidate to lead Newcastle.

Eddie Howe, who has been out of work since leaving Bournemouth in the summer of 2020, and former Borussia Dortmund boss Lucien Favre were also mentioned as other potential Newcastle coaches.

Jose Mourinho, who replaced Fonseca as Roma coach, has discarded the scenario of coaching Newcastle by firmly stating that he has a three-year contract with Roma.

"I will not leave these people. I have decided," said Mourinho.

Previously, names such as Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard also entered the market for prospective coaches for The Magpies. But now the names of the two British legends just disappeared.

Assistant coach Graeme Jones will take charge of Newcastle from Saturday's game against hosts Crystal Palace.