Darren Gough jokingly tipped Steve Harmison to be the next manager of Newcastle United and even cheekily suggested he’d be fantastic in the role.
The talkSPORT pundit shared he’d love it if the 40-year-old succeeded Rafa Benitez at St James Park as he was a proper sportsman who loved the Magpies.
Gough then added that Harmison could be helped at the club by himself and Andrew Flintoff, with him even adding that Harmison should give him a call if the role comes his way.
“I would love it if Harmy got the job,” said Gough on talkSPORT (16:22, Tuesday, July 9th).
“I think he needs a bit of a break, a bit of a break, a proper sportsman Harmy, absolutely, and he does love the team.
“Could you imagine? He would be fantastic. Harmy if you’re listening and you get it, gives us a call mate.
“Sports physiology and all that.
“Listen to this Max, his backroom staff could be Gough and Flintoff.”
OPINION
To be fair, it’s hard not to find Gough’s tip for the next Newcastle manager amusing, after all, three ex-cricketers arriving at St James Park would be a turn up for the books. It would be as if Mike Ashley was admitting that he couldn’t find a manager as good as Benitez so he had to raid another sport’s hall of fame to find people to sit in the Magpies’ dugout. However, while Gough’s antidote is amusing and Harmison is a known Newcastle fan, the chances of this happening are non-existent. While some Magpies fans may be expecting the worst when it comes to the next manager of Newcastle, they know it will be at least be someone connected with football. What they will also be aware of is that Benitez is a hard act to follow. The 59-year-old manager won the Championship with the Magpies before guiding them to a 10th-placed and 13th-placed finish in the Premier League over the last seasons. Benitez averaged 1.48 per games, as per Transfermarkt, and brought stability to the club by being in charge of 146 matches. So with that in mind, he is a difficult manager to lead on from.
