 Don Howe in 1967 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Donald Howe | ||
| Date of birth | (1935-10-12)12 October 1935 | ||
| Place of birth | Springfield,Wolverhampton, England | ||
| Date of death | 23 December 2015(2015-12-23) (aged 80) | ||
| Position(s) | Right back | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1952–1964 | West Bromwich Albion | 342 | (17) |
| 1964–1966 | Arsenal | 70 | (1) |
| Total | 412 | (18) | |
| International career | |||
| 1957–1959 | England | 23 | (0) |
| Managerial career | |||
| 1971–1975 | West Bromwich Albion | ||
| 1975–1976 | Galatasaray SK | ||
| 1983–1986 | Arsenal | ||
| 1989–1991 | Queens Park Rangers | ||
| 1992 | Coventry City | ||
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Donald Howe (12 October 1935 – 23 December 2015) was an Englishfootball player, coach,manager and pundit.[1] As aright back Howe featured for clubsWest Bromwich Albion andArsenal together with theEngland national football team in his playing career. He also went on to manage sides West Brom, Arsenal,Galatasaray,Queens Park Rangers andCoventry City. Howe was also a successful coach and has been described as one of the most influential figures of the English footballing game.[2][3]
Howe was born in theSpringfield area ofWolverhampton in 1935 and spent his secondary education atSt Peter's Collegiate School.[4][5]
Howe joined the West Bromwich Albion ground staff after leaving school,[6] joining the club as a youth player in December 1950. He turned professional in November 1952, but did not make his debut until 1955, againstEverton.[7] In all he played 379 league and cup games scoring 19 goals for the Baggies in twelve years.[7][2]
Howe was signed byBilly Wright'sArsenal in 1964, and was made club captain. However, in March 1966 hebroke his leg playing againstBlackpool and only played two further first team games both in September 1966. Firstly against Manchester City in the League on the 10th and then on the 13th against Gillingham in the League Cup.[8] Howe made 70 appearances for Arsenal altogether.[2]
In 2004, he was named as one of West Bromwich Albion's 16 greatest players, in a poll organised as part of the club's 125th anniversary celebrations.[9]
Howe retired from playing and became Arsenal's reserve team coach underBertie Mee, then stepping up to first team coach after the departure ofDave Sexton in October 1967. Arsenal wonthe Double in 1971 with Howe playing a crucial role.[8]
Not long afterward he returned to his old club, West Bromwich Albion, as manager. Howe's tenure at WBA was not a success, as the club were relegated toDivision Two in 1973. Howe then joinedLeeds United as a coach, later becoming assistant manager underJimmy Armfield, before moving on to manage Turkish clubGalatasaray in 1975. Howe rejoined Arsenal in 1977 as head coach, underTerry Neill.[8]
After Neill's sacking on 16 December 1983, Howe became Arsenal caretaker-manager and was appointed permanently after the game againstLeicester City on 28 April 1984. Despite introducing young players includingTony Adams,David Rocastle andNiall Quinn to the team during the mid-1980s, he was unable to win trophies, as Arsenal finished either 6th or 7th under him, although they did briefly top the league in October 1984.[8]
After just over two years in the job, Howe resigned on 22 March 1986, shortly after Arsenal's match againstCoventry City.George Graham succeeded him. This was subsequent to circulated reports that the board were looking at the time atFC Barcelona managerTerry Venables.[8]
Howe later joinedWimbledon as assistant toBobby Gould in 1987, and helped them win theFA Cup with a shock win overLiverpool in1988. His coaching expertise earned him a great deal of credit for Wimbledon's cup triumph.[10]
Howe then left Wimbledon to manageQPR between November 1989 and May 1991, with Gould briefly assisting him in the first half of the1990–91 season.[10]
In early 1992, Howe assistedBarry Fry with defensive work atBarnet.[11]
Shortly after leaving QPR, he became assistant manager toTerry Butcher atCoventry City and became manager in January 1992 when Butcher was sacked. Howe secured a place in the newFA Premier League for Coventry, who missed relegation by one place, and just after the end of the1991–92 season Gould rejoined him as joint manager of theHighfield Road club. However, Howe resigned as manager before the1992–93 season began.[10]He returned to Arsenal in 1997 as part of theAcademy setup wherein as the head youth coach.[8]
Howe also moved into journalism and broadcasting, becoming a pundit forChannel 4's coverage ofSerie A.[12]
As a defender, he featured regularly in theEngland national football team. Howe played in the1958 FIFA World Cup, and won 23 caps.[10][13]
He became part of the England national team's coaching setup in 1981, working underRon Greenwood. When Greenwood retired a year later, Howe continued to work for the national team under new managerBobby Robson.[10][13]
Howe became assistant forEngland underTerry Venables from January 1994 to June 1996, finishing with England's semi final appearance as host nation atEuro 96.[10][13]
Howe retired from coaching in the summer of 2003 after more than 30 years.[2] He though still ran youth coaching schemes across the United Kingdom. He occasionally wrote as a pundit for theBBC Sport website. He also held a regular column in the official Arsenal magazine.
Towards the end of 2007 and the beginning of 2008, he worked with theFootball Association of Ireland (FAI) as part of a three-man panel to appointGiovanni Trapattoni as the new national team manager.[14]
Howe died, aged 80, in December 2015.[13]
West Bromwich Albion[2]
Wimbledon
Arsenal
England squads | |||||||
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