Newcastle manager Eddie Howe says he is “not 100 per cent” but is “happy” to be back at work after recovering from pneumonia.
The club confirmed that the 47-year-old coach, who was hospitalised on April 11 after feeling unwell for several days, returned to his post on Thursday.
The Magpies boss missed Premier League games against Manchester United, Crystal Palace and Aston Villa but will return for Saturday's clash with relegation-threatened Ipswich.
Howe said he had experienced “the full range of emotions” over the past two weeks, adding: “I'm OK. I'm not 100 percent physically, but hopefully mentally I'm close to 100 percent, and that's the most important thing.”
“I tried to find the positive in every experience. That's really important, but it was a real challenge because you start to take your health for granted.
“Of course, and when you can’t feel normal, it can be quite difficult.
“I've definitely been through a lot of emotions, but luckily I feel like I'm on the road to recovery and that's the most important thing and I'm happy to be here.”
Howe revealed he felt unwell while watching Newcastle's 3-0 win away to Leicester on April 7 and had initially hoped to return to training ahead of the United game.
“I watched the Leicester game and felt terrible. My plan was to get back into training to prepare for the Manchester United game,” he said.
“I got out of bed, took a shower and thought, ‘Okay, time to go,’ but I couldn’t, something inside me was telling me, no, I need to go back to bed.
“That was the moment when everything changed.”
Howe not only thanked the hospital's medical staff but also expressed gratitude to club doctor Paul Catterson, adding that without his intervention “the outcome could have been different”.
“I was really feeling bad about that, but I didn’t realize how bad,”
Sourse: breakingnews.ie
