Newcastle United's hierarchy have reached a complete agreement to keep Matthias Jaissle in his role as head coach, despite a dismal start to the season that has seen the team suffer consecutive defeats to Everton. The German, who is just three months into his first Premier League campaign, retains the full confidence of the club's chiefs.
Chronicle Live understands that both CEO David Hopkinson and sporting director Ross Wilson will continue to stand by the 38-year-old. There is sympathy within the club's inner circle, with the sentiment that collective responsibility for the current predicament extends across the board—from Hopkinson and Wilson to head of performance James Bunce and head of strategy Jack Ross. Jaissle himself used the term "alignment" only last week.
Transitional squad and young talent
The squad's transitional period was always expected by those at the top, with the head coach largely opting to rely on experienced, inherited players such as Jacob Murphy, Joe Willock and Yoane Wissa ahead of younger summer acquisitions, including Sean Steur, Aladji Bamba and Bazoumana Toure.
Steur certainly strengthened his claim for a starting berth at Fulham on Saturday with an impressive, arguably man-of-the-match display against Everton, injecting verve and dynamism into a lacklustre midfield. However, that momentum must be carried into the fixture at Craven Cottage this weekend, and Steur may not be the sole change against the London outfit.
Pressure mounts after Everton defeat
Newcastle were met with boos both at full-time and during their lap of appreciation, yet it is understood club chiefs drew encouragement from a considerably improved final 30 minutes, as Anthony Elanga was desperately unfortunate to see the ball rebound off the post and spin across the line, while Wissa was thwarted by a fine stop from Jordan Pickford.
Having dropped both skipper Malick Thiaw and Sven Botman, Newcastle failed to capitalise on their 2-0 victory at Crystal Palace and have since slumped to defeat against Everton. Further pressure has mounted after Newcastle squandered the opportunity to climb to seventh on Monday evening, and the forthcoming fixtures following the international break—Arsenal (h), Brighton (a), Man United (h) and Sunderland (h)—mean Jaissle must urgently arrest the decline.
Jaissle takes responsibility
Jaissle shared his thoughts on the matter on Monday following the match, saying: "We need to analyse that now. We need to look at the detail. It is also clear that I have the responsibility, and I also take that responsibility as the manager of this club. And we need to do things better."
He added: "There are many, many things that were not at the level we expect, out of possession and in possession. We want to press them (opponents) high and stress them out as soon as possible. We need to make a clear distinction that if the opposition overplay, we defend it in a compact block. We didn't see that much on the pitch (against Everton)."
It was business as usual on Tuesday morning at the club's training ground, yet a deeply serious undertone clouds Newcastle's current situation. The club hierarchy are acutely aware that even contemplating a managerial change this early would cast doubt on their own judgement, a mere 90 days after Jaissle had been hailed as a "rock star" by CEO Hopkinson.
Naturally, the Canadian was simply extending a warm welcome when he made those remarks back in August, while also lending his support to sporting director Wilson's choice—a man so convinced by Jaissle that he wanted to offer the former Hoffenheim player the role on the spot during an interview in a Portuguese restaurant, following Howe's decision to walk away.
Then there is the staggering financial burden that PIF would face in replacing their manager just months into his reign. The Magpies shelled out £9.5m to release him from Al-Ahli, are already effectively bankrolling Howe, who remains on gardening leave, and would be required to compensate Jaissle and his backroom staff handsomely after handing him a five-year deal.
For the time being, sources within the club insist that patience is the guiding principle, with steering the side through a demanding run of fixtures between now and the turn of the year remaining the sole priority. Newcastle currently languish in 13th place above Fulham, though the tightly-packed Premier League table means a single victory could significantly relieve the mounting pressure at the club.
