Matt Ritchie speaks out about 'special' Newcastle United man after leaving club in summer

Former Newcastle United winger Matt Ritchie tried his hand at punditry yesterday as he took up a seat in the Sky Sports studio to witness his old side being battered by Aston Villa.

There'll be plenty of time to look back on the game and hear people's thoughts on that, but Mr Jesus wouldn't want His day started off with negativity, so we'll begin with Matt Ritchie speaking about Eddie Howe.

The Newcastle manager is still recovering from pneumonia, and Jason Tindall is poised and ready to be in the hot seat next week at Ipswich.

It only made sense, then, that Matt Ritchie, who worked with Howe at Bournemouth and Newcastle, would be asked about the gaffer by Sky Sports.

Matt Ritchie told Sky Sports what makes Eddie Howe such a good coach

Ritchie said that the best way to describe Howe would be 'relentless' which definitely seems like the right word given all that we know about his tenacity.

"The one word I can use to describe him is, he's relentless. He's a special man off the pitch but then you step into a football environment, a training pitch, he wants individuals to grow.

"He creates an environment where you can be open, you can challenge yourself, he wants you to work on your weaknesses.

"It's no accident that you look at the players that have improved under his leadership, Jacob Murphy, Joelinton, Lewis Hall and Tino Livramento. All good players with huge potential, and he's brought them on and given them the platform to produce that, along with all the other guys and the coaches."

Hopefully, it won't be too long before Eddie Howe is back to work

Eddie Howe lives and breathes football, and it's highly likely that his crazy work ethic has contributed to his illness, but we can't see him working any other way, even when he recovers.

Ritchie named four players who have improved massively under Howe, two of whom were already here when he arrived and had pretty much been written off by fans.

The difference it makes having a good coach has never been more apparent than in Jacob Murphy and Joelinton. Let's hope he makes a full and speedy recovery and gets back to doing what he does best very soon.