Matthias Jaissle has not been announced as the new manager of Newcastle United yet, but it is only a matter of time. The German is walking into a difficult situation though. He will have to replace Eddie Howe, one of the best in club history, and with a weakened squad at his disposal.
Sandro Tonali and Anthony Gordon have already left. Bruno Guimaraes is on the verge of joining Arsenal. The likes of Nick Pope, Joe Willock and Joelinton could be gone before the close of the window. And the rumours around Lewis Hall refuse to go away.
This no longer feels like a project built with the intention of winning. Instead, the focus seems to have shifted towards sustainability, as Brighton & Hove Albion and Bournemouth have achieved.
Even then, Newcastle United need to make quality additions that will help Jaissle deliver satisfactory results. The expectations have been raised over the past four years. Now, that cannot be suddenly reset to zero.
Newcastle United tipped to bring back England international for Matthias Jaissle
According to Harri Burton of Football Insider, Ivan Toney may finally be given another chance to prove himself in a Newcastle United shirt following Howe’s departure.
Of course, Toney was on the books of Newcastle United for several years early in his career. But that time was marked by half a dozen spells away on loan.
It is when Toney left Newcastle United and went down to League One to play for Peterborough United that he established himself in senior football. 49 goals over two seasons meant that big clubs came calling.
A move to Celtic had seemed close but he ended up picking Brentford eventually. A record-breaking season in the Championship followed, and he then further underlined his quality at Premier League level.
By the time he left Brentford, most top teams in England wanted him. But he would make the move to Al-Ahli instead. There, he was managed by none other than Jaissle himself.
Why signing Ivan Toney would be a masterstroke for Newcastle
Jaissle knows exactly what it takes to get the best out of Toney. After all, he scored 72 goals in two seasons under the German manager at Al-Ahli.
As a result, Toney was arguably the most integral part of Al-Ahli’s back-to-back AFC Champions League Elite triumphs. So, it would be a no-brainer to bring him back to St James’ Park and reunite him with Jaissle.
Toney is still 30 years of age and part of the England national team picture as well. So, this is not a player who is past his prime by any means.
The bigger question is whether he would be open to the idea or not. Toney might need to take a significant pay cut in order to make a move feasible. Is he open to that prospect? Or would he want to continue his career at Al-Ahli?
