Newcastle United had been quietly preparing for Eddie Howe's departure for the best part of a year, according to sporting director Ross Wilson.
Howe stepped down in July, ending nearly five years in charge, saying a break was in the best interests of everyone involved despite having initially intended to continue this season. His exit came amid a summer of major upheaval at the club, with several key players also leaving. But Wilson rejects the idea that the transition was messy, insisting Newcastle had contingency plans ready well in advance.
"We always knew where we were going to go," Wilson said. "That doesn't mean we were always going to Matthias, but he was always part of our planning. Part of our responsibility as leaders of the club is to be prepared, and Eddie is an exceptionally talented coach. That means he was probably going to do something else at some point, so we had to be prepared for that."
Wilson, who joined the club last October, revealed he had been working on succession planning in the background for "eight or nine months" before Howe's exit. After weighing up several candidates, Newcastle settled on Matthias Jaissle — formerly of Al-Ahli in Saudi Arabia — as the man to succeed what Wilson called a "legend of the club."
The club wanted a manager who could build on Howe's intense, high-pressing approach. Jaissle's track record developing young talent at Red Bull Salzburg also aligned with Newcastle's recruitment focus on players aged 24 and under. After Jaissle's first meeting with the club, chief executive David Hopkinson told Wilson he was "really excited about this one" — a reaction Wilson says confirmed they'd found their man.
No Fixed Target for Jaissle
Jaissle remains unbeaten through four games in all competitions, though only three of Newcastle's eight summer signings started the 2-2 draw with Bournemouth — a sign, Wilson says, of how much adjustment the squad still needs. Jaissle himself has repeatedly framed the season as a "transition phase."
While Newcastle have modeled various financial outcomes tied to their final league position, Wilson confirmed Jaissle hasn't been handed a specific target for the campaign. Hopkinson reaffirmed the club's broader ambition to "consistently and credibly compete" for major trophies while staying within financial regulations. Newcastle are also targeting a 50% revenue increase by 2030, driven mainly by sponsorship, though player sales will remain central to their financial strategy.
"We want to have players here who are on a journey with us," Wilson said. "Equally, if some of those players' journeys go at rapid speed, they might go somewhere else. That's normal. That's part of football."
Not everything went to plan, however. Wilson admitted Bruno Guimaraes' move to Arsenal wasn't something the club anticipated, and Newcastle also missed out on targets Victor Munoz and Johan Manzambi, who joined Liverpool and Aston Villa respectively.
Still, Wilson maintained: "Everything else that happened during the window was part of the plan," adding that no club ever secures every player it sets its sights on.
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