Keeper Krul hopes for end to ‘uncertainty’ at Newcastle

Krul returned from injury in Saturday’s 2-0 defeat to Chelsea.

And the goalkeeper – who had been sidelined since late November with an ankle problem – felt Newcastle played some of their best football of the season before the break at Stamford Bridge.

But a 43rd-minute goal from Oscar and a second-half strike from Diego Costa saw off managerless United.

John Carver, departed manager Alan Pardew’s No2, has been in temporary charge for the past three games, and Krul feels he could take the role on a longer-term basis.

Remi Garde, however, has held discussions with the club about succeeding Pardew.

For his part, Krul is hopeful of a swift appointment – and an end to the “uncertainty”.

“If the board have someone out there who they think is their best man, then hopefully they can resolve the situation quite quickly,” said Krul.

“That would remove any of the uncertainty, but if that is not the situation, then John and Steve (Stone, United’s first-team coach), continuing is a great option, and the players will back them 100 per cent.

“There’s not a lot changed under John and Steve, but to be honest, things wouldn’t change that quickly in a week or so anyway.

“The one thing they have done is make everything really clear, and I think you could see in the Chelsea game that everyone knew their jobs really clearly.

“That’s a big thing. It’s their job to put the team out there with a game plan that works, and even though we didn’t get anything in the end, I thought they did that really well.”

Krul added: “The most important thing is that it’s the right decision in the end.

“At the moment, the only thing we can do as players is work our socks off on the training ground for John and Steve.

“We had a great game plan to take on Chelsea, and I thought we played really well. I think it was one of our best games of the season, even though we didn’t get anything from it.

“John and Steve have stepped up to the plate, and everybody knows their jobs and what’s expected of them.

“For me, that’s one of the most important things you want from your manager. It was really the case with Louis van Gaal in the summer as well.

“In that Holland squad, everybody knew their role really clearly and understood what was being asked of them.

“It was a straight line in terms of the direction you were getting, and that’s what John has done in the last few weeks.”

Krul could only watch in frustration as Newcastle exited both domestic cups during his time out injured, and the Holland international was just relieved to be back on the pitch at Stamford Bridge.

“It’s a great feeling to be back,” he said. “This is what it’s all about, games like this.

“It’s a shame we didn’t end up with anything because I think we deserved at least a point. I think, especially looking at the first half, we could easily have had a couple of goals.

“I’ve been training with the boys now for a little bit more than a week, and had half a game on Thursday for the reserves just to get my sharpness back.

“Obviously, this game will help me massively, and I’m fully back now with no pain at all in the ankle. I’m happy with that.”

Twitter: @milesstarforth