‘Amazing’: Pep Guardiola was once wowed by manager Newcastle could reportedly appoint

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Steve Bruce has left Newcastle United and so begins the Magpies hunt for a new manager.

The Tyneside club have new owners so they can afford to be rather ambitious with their next appointment, and if reports from The Telegraph are to be believed, Amanda Staveley has already decided on who she wants at the helm at St James’ Park.

Indeed, The Telegraph claim that Staveley is keen on former Roma boss Paulo Fonseca and it seems as though he would be a rather shrewd appointment.

The Portuguese gaffer has an exciting CV having managed the likes of Roma and Shakhtar Donetsk, and he’s even impressed Pep Guardiola in the past.

What’s been said?

Fonseca headed to the Etihad back in 2017 and while he wasn’t victorious, a 2-0 loss was very respectable, especially when you consider this was a side that would go on to get 100 Premier League points that season.

After that game, Guardiola said to City’s official website that he was impressed with Fonseca’s ‘amazing’ Shakhtar side.

Guardiola noted that Fonseca had made his team ‘well organised’ and they ‘defended really well.’

Fonseca’s Shakhtar then got the better of City a few months later in the reverse fixture, showing his quality as a manager.

Impressive

The rave review from Guardiola is incredibly impressive, and it shows that he’s the right man for the job at St James’ Park right now.

Being well organised and defending well is key to keeping any team in the Premier League and Guardiola noted just how tough Fonseca’s Shakhtar were to break down.

The fact that the Ukrainian side then won the reverse fixture tells you all you need to know about how well Fonseca can set his teams up, and if he can provide those types of results at Newcastle, he will prove to be immensely popular.