There is no predetermined path to the top of the football managerial ladder. But most would need more on their CV than Austrian and Saudi clubs to get the chance to lead Newcastle United.
At 38, Matthias Jaissle is the ultimate gamble after the success of steady Eddie Howe, regardless of his football upbringing. It is therefore even easier to write off the chances of a man who isn’t overly keen on the Julian Nagelsmann 2.0 claims before his reign has even begun.
Had Newcastle possessed non-Middle Eastern owners, Jaissle would not even come into the conversation. Now he is talk of the Toon, there’s more to be said about his career accomplishments than the naysayers care to realise.
“As we look to grow as a league in the eyes of the world, with younger players coming in instead of stars perhaps past their best, we are sad to be losing Matze [Jaissle],” one Saudi Pro League official tells The i Paper.
“What he achieved here is special. To take a team who had just been relegated all the way to the top of the continent is not easy to do, no matter where you are in the world.
