Former Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger has sung the praises of Newcastle manager Eddie Howe.

The Gunners meet Newcastle later this afternoon.

Wenger told beIN SPORTS: "I would say first of all that he did a good job at Bournemouth. After, of course he went through a very difficult period which he certainly learned a lot from. He took the challenge to go to Newcastle.

"I thought at the time he took the challenge, it was an interesting challenge for a young manager. Why? Because you want to go to a club where you have potential who hasn't achieved anything for a long time and has huge potential.

"At the start, it was difficult but the fact he had this experience at Bournemouth helped him a lot. When the new ownership came in, I think he did very well and slowly he has built the team with balance, desire, passion for the game.

"He has been consistent with his results, and overall I must say in the last two years he has done an exceptional job. They've just beaten Paris Saint-Germain 4-1 in the Champions League having not played in the Champions League for a very long time.

"Now, you consider them to be on the fringe of the top four. The next step for them will be to be consistent in the top four, and after to challenge for the Premier League.

"To do that, they'll certainly need some more top players who have the same mentality. The challenge for him will be to keep that mentality he has brought, and the culture of performance he has instilled in the team, and add more quality without losing that."