Matthias Jaissle has quite an act to follow at Newcastle United. As a source said: “It won’t be easy to succeed Eddie Howe.”
Just like Newcastle’s moves to sign young players from the continent, there is an element of risk with this appointment as the club bring in a manager who has never coached in the Premier League before.
Jaissle delivered success in Saudi Arabia and Austria – with Al-Ahli and Red Bull Salzburg respectively – but this will be the first time he has sampled life in one of Europe’s top five leagues.
He becomes the Premier League’s second-youngest current head coach at 38 years old, and his first competitive game is against Liverpool on Sunday, 23 August.
There has been no time to waste since he arrived at the club’s pre-season training camp in Spain at the weekend.
“He will try to understand the culture and what Newcastle means to the community as soon as possible,” added a source. “That’s what he will live by.”
Howe certainly set the standard, however last season was a bruising one domestically.
The club now need a progressive manager to start a new cycle and build on what he did at the peak of his reign.
Effectively, Jaissle’s remit will be to develop players and outperform clubs with bigger wage bills – and the squad should expect him to be just as demanding as his predecessor in training.
“We did lots of small-sided games to keep the intensity high,” said former Salzburg midfielder Zlatko Junuzovic. “If someone had not been giving it their all, he called them out on it. He isn’t afraid to address things head-on.”
He also brings with him a group of coaches and analysts who will look to quickly get his message across – Al-Ahli defender Merih Demiral knows that better than most.
“They paid great attention to every detail and always made sure we were fully prepared,” Demiral said. “He has built a really strong team around him and they played a huge role in our success.”
