Jones in hotseat to take on Chelsea
GRAHAM Jones will stay in charge of Newcastle at least until the end of this month.
The turbulent reign of Steve Bruce at St James’s Park came to an end this week.
While the Toon sort out their new gaffer, former No2 Jones has been put in charge.
He took the team to Crystal Palace yesterday but any hope of a swift appointment look wide of the mark.
Jones has been told by the club’s Saudibacked owners that he’ll be in charge of next weekend’s clash with Chelsea.
He said: “I spoke to the owners on Wednesday morning and they asked me to take the team on an interim basis for the next two games, so Crystal Palace and Chelsea at home.
“As I’ve said previously, I am fully focussed on preparing the team the best we can to be competitive.”
Jones was part of England’s backroom team for the Euro finals this summer and was a key man for Bruce.
Difficult
He is upset that his former boss has left the club.
Jones said: “Initially it’s one of upset because I had a great working relationship with Steve, he is a good man.
“You never want to be in and around that in football because it means it has not worked. Initially on Wednesday, it was difficult, this is true.
“But we all know the speed of football and how quickly it needs to move on because if you miss a day or you miss a training session you are not as prepared as you could be.
“The focus quickly changed on Thursday and Friday in terms of positivity and getting the boys ready tactically for the game.”
Former Roma chief Paulo Fonseca held talks with the club’s owners on Wednesday but there has been no announcement since.
It appears that Newcastle want to speak to other managers before making their decision.