How Eddie Howe is feeling ahead of new campaign after tough 2025/26 season

We're in July now, which is usually the cut-off point for 'last season' and 'this season', so after a nightmare last season, how will Newcastle United do this season?

It's obviously far too soon to tell. There's still a lot of work to be done in the transfer market before we can even get a feel for what our squad is going to look like, and that's before we see how the World Cup has affected our lads.

We can officially put that awful 2025/26 campaign behind us now and focus on the future, and hopefully that's what the players and staff have done.

A clean slate is exactly what we need going into the new campaign. The lack of European football isn't great from a prestige and a financial perspective, but it does mean we can focus on the Premier League this year, and that should lead to a good final position.

The big question is, how is Eddie Howe feeling going into this season? It wasn't an easy one for the manager last time out, with plenty of dissenting voices calling for a change in the dugout.

Eddie Howe is 'all-in' at Newcastle

According to Craig Hope in the Daily Mail, Howe remains 'all-in' and has returned with optimism, according to insiders.

Hope goes on to claim that he expects Howe's optimism to be thoroughly tested, though, especially if these Bruno Guimarães rumours about him being open to leaving turn out to be true.

There's no reason to panic on that front just yet. Bruno is fully invested in the World Cup with Brazil, while Newcastle have made their position very clear that their captain is not for sale.

Bruno Guimarães has the power to change the mood

Football is a fickle sport, though, and things can change at any time. If Bruno decides at any point that he wants away, that could dramatically change the landscape at the club.

We like to believe that Bruno Guimarães is happy at Newcastle, and there has been nothing to suggest otherwise; however, you can't deny that he's an ambitious player, and he's coming up on 29 years old. Time is running out for him to bag a league title or a Champions League winner's medal.

If anything could knock the wind out of the eternal optimist that is Eddie Howe, it would be a Bruno Guimarães transfer request.