Eddie Howe shares expletive-laden moment of relief alongside Newcastle chairman Yasir Al-Rumayyan after Nottingham Forest win – with Saudi governor in town to make stadium call

Eddie Howe has revealed that he and Newcastle chairman Yasir Al-Rumayyan shared a moment of expletive-laden relief after the 4-3 win over Nottingham Forest.

The PIF governor and key stakeholders from the Saudi ownership are on Tyneside to make decisions on stadium and training-ground projects.

But first they took in Sunday’s game, in which their team led 4-1 at half-time only to be left clinging to victory in the closing stages.

‘I spoke to (Yasir) very briefly after the game, just for 10 or 15 seconds,’ said Howe. ‘There were a couple of swear words from me about the game, I think. He was in the same emotional state as I was, so it was a nice moment.’

All eyes are now on what Al-Rumayyan and the majority owners decide is the best move with regards the club’s stadium. They must choose between redeveloping St James’ Park or building from scratch on nearby Leazes Park.

Howe added: ‘He’s very invested in the football club, he’s on top of everything. It was definitely great to see him.’

Howe enjoyed an brief, expletive-filled conversation with the Saudi governor, who is in town to work on stadium plans

The Magpies beat Nottingham Forest 4-3 in a closely-fought game in the Premier League

Of the game, the Newcastle boss said: ‘We’ve seen the best of us and the worst of us in the two halves. I thought we were outstanding in that first half, everything that we weren’t against Manchester City in our last game – dynamic, fluid, played with speed and intensity.

‘But we didn’t sustain it in the second half. We lost momentum and then couldn’t recapture it. This has happened too many times this season, where we’ve been inconsistent game to game, and inconsistent in-game as well.

‘But we have won what was a very tough game, so I have to be very pleased. The players were magnificent in their response to conceding, so there is a lot of good stuff to take away and, of course, some stuff to improve.’

Forest took the lead inside six minutes before conceding four times in an 11-minute period. Nuno Espirito Santo said: ‘We were too bad, too soon. It’s about trying to settle down and be ourselves. In the first half I didn’t recognise our team. In the second half we were much better.

‘I wish there was 10 minutes added on (there were three). We needed that time. We were on top, Newcastle were on the ropes. With 10 minutes I think we can get something from this game.’