John Carver is convinced he will have Sir Bobby Robson standing alongside him on one side and Gary Speed on the other when he walks out at St James' Park on New Year's Day.
The 49-year-old will deputise as Newcastle boss for the second time in his career to date as the Magpies take on Burnley in the Barclays Premier League with manager Alan Pardew bound for Crystal Palace.
Carver, a boyhood Newcastle fan who spent two years as a professional at his home-town club without making a senior appearance, has been asked to take charge of the next two games, along with first-team coach Steve Stone and football development manager Peter Beardsley.
However, he is confident that he will have even more support in the shape of the late Sir Bobby Robson, under whom he worked during his reign on Tyneside.
Carver said: "For some reason, I started reading Sir Bobby's autobiography last night. There was a message on the front of the book -- 'Thanks for a fantastic, successful five years, it should have been a lot longer. Cheers, Sir Bobby.'
"When he gave me that book, he said to me, 'You do realise how big this football club is, and if ever you get an opportunity, don't be scared of it, enjoy it and take it with both hands'. So I am sitting here now and I'm going to take it with both hands.
"I'm a Catholic and I believe he will be looking down on me, I really do. For some reason that was why I had the inspiration to get the book and started reading it.
"He will be there with us. He will be in the technical area with us, let me tell you that, because I never stop thinking about him.
"Apart from my mum and dad, who I lost recently, there are two people I never stop thinking about -- he [Robson] is one of them, and Gary Speed is the other. They are always with us, and I think about them every game.
"They were good football people, and both of those figures understood what it meant to play and manage at this football club."
Carver's temporary appointment comes at a time when Magpies owner Mike Ashley and managing director Lee Charnley are assessing their options as they look to appoint a long-term successor to Pardew once his exit is confirmed.
They are understood to be looking for a head coach rather than a manager, a man who will work under the same system which at times exercised Pardew with chief scout Graham Carr playing the central role in recruitment.
As a result, the likes of Steve Bruce, Tony Pulis and Tim Sherwood have already been ruled out, and there has been speculation that Carver himself could take over until the end of the season or even longer-term.
However, he insisted he had not even considered that possibility as he prepared the players for Thursday's game.
He said: "When I have had a chance to sit down and think about it, I'll let you know. I haven't even had a chance to think about what I'm having for my tea tonight. It's absolutely crazy -- you don't get any time to yourself."
Carver had one game in charge of the club following Robson's departure in 2004, a 3-0 win over Blackburn, but he admits the atmosphere this time around is very different.
He said: "When this happened the last time around when Sir Bob was sacked, it was very difficult because I had to deal with that disappointment at first, and then I had to get the team ready for Blackburn.
"This situation is a different scenario. It's not as if the manager has been fired and getting your head around that is quite difficult."
Carver will be without in-from striker Papiss Cisse as he starts a three-game ban, and he has been released to join up with the Senegal squad ahead of the African Cup of Nations.