Newcastle United head coach Matthias Jaissle is understood to have turned down the chance to bring in senior players in the first few weeks of taking on the job. From tactical concerns, to the transfer reality of a club that started the summer sanctioning a plan for Eddie Howe before being forced to rethink their next steps when the ex-Bournemouth boss told them he'd had enough, Jaissle and his staff quickly had to get to the bottom of issues behind the scenes that needed to be fixed quickly before the 2026/27 season started.
Howe's exit and early concerns
This was done through player meetings and chats with backroom members who had been rocked by news that Howe was leaving the club. Few suspected Howe was about to quit, not least as he was spotted watching clips of the 4-1 defeat against Bristol City in a friendly just hours before the bombshell dropped that he'd tendered his resignation.
One of the first concerns that the German coach had was replacing Bruno Guimaraes - who joined Arsenal for £75m - in midfield. Jaissle quickly discovered that Newcastle had arguably become over-reliant on the Brazil international. The new boss held early consultations with some of the players he inherited, and there were some internal worries that simply giving the ball to Bruno to relieve the team of pressure had kicked in last season. Indeed, Newcastle slipped from 10th - in European contention by a few points - to 14th in the time period Bruno was out with a hamstring injury.
Senior targets considered
After Bruno had said goodbye to Newcastle after a brief meeting with Jaissle, transfer meetings involved the consideration for bringing in senior players to bridge the gap. Marseille's 31-year-old Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg was deemed a solution at one stage and the Danish star was keen on the move to begin with before asking for too much money after a fee had been agreed between the two clubs.
Other senior stars were also looked into - Joao Palhinha was one player linked - with Newcastle chiefs sympathetic to Jaissle's lack of a full pre-season, having come in late from Al-Ahli. They would have been happy to back him if he wanted a couple of experienced lieutenants in his camp.
Commitment to youth
But sporting director Ross Wilson and the board were impressed by Jaissle's courage to stick closer to the club's plan of going with younger stars. Once the Hojbjerg deal was dead, Newcastle pushed on with the plan that had given Howe some concerns, and accelerated moves for younger stars Nico Gonzalez (24) and Matias Fernandez-Pardo (21).
Newcastle had already signed the likes of Sean Steur, Aladji Bamba and Bazoumana Toure, and while CEO David Hopkinson has also described the way ahead as a 'brave' new world, there is also an acceptance behind the scenes that there will be the odd bump in the road. That was very much the case at Leeds during the 4-1 loss at Elland Road when Jaissle impressively used his words carefully in the Press conference room after a heated debrief further down the corridor.
Looking ahead
Hojbjerg hobbled off injured during Wales' narrow defeat to Denmark. The midfielder's workload was always going to be a test, particularly if he has stepped up a level in intensity in swapping Ligue 1 for the Premier League, and the deal may be a bullet swerved.
Steur, a player signed from Ajax by Wilson before Jaissle's appointment, is understood to have been one of the big characters to have stood out in the dressing room so far. Quickly recovering from an error at Leeds, Steur's ability to take immediate accountability has left the backroom team delighted.
The road ahead will be nurturing the likes of Toure, Bamba and Steur, while Lewis Miley was named in the club's leadership group in order to give youth a voice in the dressing room. Jaissle has also monitored the progress of youngsters such as Henry Johnson, Miodrag Pivas and Mason Miley during the international break.
Having offered his views in recruitment meetings with staff in recent weeks, the next couple of windows will see Newcastle pursue more young stars. But the focus for now is getting the team to a place of solidity in the first half of the season. Victory over Coventry would take United past the quarter mark of the 40-point tally deemed as the first big building block for a sturdy campaign. So far, this has been a good start for Jaissle despite coming in with pre-season well under way and uncertainty in the air.
