David Hopkinson's prepared Newcastle United message leaves Eddie Howe in no doubt over his future

A summer of change could well be upon us at St James' Park but will Eddie Howe still be in the dugout in August - the latest comments cast doubt on that

Newcastle United CEO David Hopkinson, right

Whether Eddie Howe was a little surprised by CEO David Hopkinson's comments at a round table with journalists on Monday morning may be reflected in his next scheduled meeting with the media on April 10.

But one thing seems to be certain at Newcastle United as the painful derby defeat against Sunderland continues to be slowly digested during the pause in Premier League fixtures - and that is failure to qualify for Europe in the last seven games could come with consequences.

It was an open question to Hopkinson on Howe, but the answer came with restrictions, such as not looking beyond this season or the last seven matches - and that Newcastle weren't having conversations about the head coach's future at the moment.

But one thing was clear from Hopkinson when he said 'Eddie is still our manager'. To me, that suggested that the job was Howe's to lose.

I'm not sure whether it is as straight-forward as not qualifying for Europe means Howe will go. I think a scenario exists where Newcastle don't qualify, and Howe stays. It will be the manner of how the Magpies miss out that will determine a lot.

Splutter out of a season that once promised so much and the noise on Tyneside will be loud and clear. Narrowly miss out and show signs of fight in a near miss, and that would be different.

The St James' Park crowd have always been fair and patient despite nonsense theories that Kevin Keegan or Sir Bobby Robson were hounded out. The big danger for me is that Newcastle restart their Premier League programme with a defeat or two and then we are suddenly in the narrative of players 'thinking of the beach' or 'playing in their flip flops.'

We've seen it before at Newcastle when there is little to play for and a season fizzles out. Even Sir Bobby endured walking around a near-empty stadium in 2004 when United went from a Champions League place to an old UEFA Cup slot.

Why did that happen? Because a team blessed with so much talent failed to secure a money spinning top four finish which then set the club on a different course.

If Newcastle fizzle out and finish in a low position or lose to a West Ham side that could have everything to play for in the penultimate game of the season, what type of scene could be in store at St James' Park?

It doesn't bear thinking about, but Howe would have known the score before the CEO made it clear that a strong finish was needed. With seven games left, Newcastle have the challenge of trying to thread together more than three Premier League wins in a row for the first time in a year.

They haven't done it this season, but now have the luxury of preparing for one game a week, with Howe afforded plenty of time to perfect a masterplan or two in the remaining games. He will need every player reading off the same song sheet to get into Europe.

But if players - especially those linked with moves or thinking about the World Cup - start checking out early, the need from Hopkinson to send out a simple and clear 'improve or else' message will be obvious to everybody on the outside.

Hopkinson did not walk into a room full of journalists ill-prepared; he did so having taken the temperature of the building and having held a two-hour meeting with Howe himself.

But if ever a manager was being judged on results, it's between now and the end of the season.

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