Newcastle United head coach Matthias Jaissle has admitted he will have to set aside his admiration for former England midfielder Frank Lampard when his side face Coventry City on Monday night.
Jaissle, who grew up watching football as a youngster, recalled watching England's 2010 World Cup match against Germany at Hoffenheim — where he was a youth player at the time. Lampard's controversial strike, famously dubbed the "ghost goal," was disallowed despite crossing the line during a 4-1 defeat at the Free State Stadium in Bloemfontein. The decision prompted a furious reaction and an apology from then-FIFA president Sepp Blatter.
Jaissle's Admiration for Lampard
Speaking about that moment, Jaissle said: "I remember, I remember. It was probably luck for us that day."
He added: "And I saw many of his other goals! Frank is a pure legend to me still, and I think he shot so many brilliant goals during his career. Unfortunately, I never played against him. That's due to my missed qualities."
"But like I said, a pure legend, what he delivered as a player was unbelievable, and also for the national team. So someone you of course always looked up to as a player."
Focus on Improving Away Form
Any hero worship will be paused during a tough match against the Sky Blues at the Coventry Building Society Arena. One of Jaissle's main aims this season is to improve on Newcastle's drastic away form from last term, when they won just four of 19 matches and collected only 17 points on the road, costing them a place in Europe.
When asked about addressing away form, Jaissle said: "You always try to win as much as possible, home and away. But there are so many teams in the Premier League and everybody can beat anybody on their day."
"So it is a tough challenge which we must take step by step. We are now focused on Coventry, then Aston Villa next match and so on. Planning too far ahead in advance or trying to plan a winning streak does not make sense. You need to earn that. And that is really tough in the Premier League."
Respect for Coventry
Coventry signed off for the international break with a 2-1 win over Nottingham Forest last month, and Jaissle had his scouts assessing their main threats at the City Ground. Despite their tag as a newly promoted club, Jaissle is refusing to take them lightly.
"Every team is capable to win against every opponent. Coventry have the quality," he said. "They won their last match, they have confidence after winning that game. They will have momentum. If we perform at our best, then it will be difficult to beat us. We want to make it as difficult for them as possible."
Team News
Jaissle is likely to welcome back Brazilian star Joelinton after two months out with a muscle injury, while late checks on Dan Burn's ankle injury will also take place. However, neither is expected to start and will likely begin on the bench.
Touching on Joelinton's return, Jaissle said: "He has qualities on the ball and out of possession. He is a leader - his body language shows that. We need warriors in the team. We are really happy to have him back training with us."
