There often comes a point in a manager’s reign when the blame for defeat shifts from the dugout to the dressing room, and it is invariably the point of no return. Rarely does it arrive after just nine matches.
So when Matthias Jaissle took aim at his players in the wake of Newcastle’s 1-0 defeat by Everton on Monday, it was arguably a more concerning display than the 90 minutes which had preceded it, as alarming as those had been.
Jaissle’s post-match reflections were not inaccurate. This was not a manager talking nonsense. He fronted up and gave what felt like honest answers.
The 38-year-old is bright and articulate and, with each defeat, has shown an increasing humility that was less visible during the optimism of his introductory days.
To show the players the underside of the bus so soon, however, is as baffling a tactic as the strategy enacted on the pitch, even if Jaissle insists that performance had no resemblance to what he had asked of his team.
Rather, says the German, he had wanted his players to keep the ball on the floor and get the wingers in one-on-one situations high up the pitch. What he saw was a collection of long balls and a heading-practice session for Everton’s centre backs. The wingers, meanwhile, were spectators.
When a manager blames the players for defeat – as Matthias Jaissle did after Newcastle lost to Everton on Monday night – it is often the beginning of the end for the man in the dugout
Newcastle winger Harvey Barnes struggled to get on the ball during the defeat by Everton
‘The plan was not to shoot the long balls,’ he said.
Nor was the plan to shoot at all, it seemed. It took until the 85th minute for Newcastle to trouble Jordan Pickford, and even then the goalkeeper wasn’t overly concerned.
Short ball? Long ball? Whatever pass Newcastle pick, it is invariably the wrong ball. They are a team without identity – no patterns, no partnerships and, certainly, no sign of progress. So while there is some sympathy with Jaissle if players are failing to follow his instructions, it always comes back on any manager to make sure they do.
I once wrote of Everton boss David Moyes, when in charge of Sunderland, that he had inherited a sinking ship, only to drill another hole. Moyes, for the record, is a very good manager, he just wasn’t at Sunderland.
And that is the danger with Jaissle. He, too, walked into a difficult situation post Eddie Howe and the loss of several star players. Their replacements have been bench-warners or cold starters.
But Jaissle has to be the solution, not another problem. At present, the fear is that a young manager with no major-league experience is held hostage by his ideals and refuses to bend to what his players want and need.
His continued use of a 4-2-3-1 system, with two midfielders who cannot really run and a revolving cast of No 10s who are not No 10s, feels with each passing week and each passing defeat like a blueprint for relegation.
Maybe the team ignoring their manager’s wishes on Monday night was a cry for change. A protest, even? Do they not believe in his methods or do they not understand them?
Newcastle’s Yoane Wissa rues a missed chance against Everton in what was Newcastle’s fourth loss in the last five Premier League games
Jaissle tries to get his message across to Joelinton and Barnes at St James’ Park
Either way, Newcastle must try something different. The Everton loss, and the nature of a performance absent of direction or conviction, was not a surprise. This run of form – four defeats in five – has been coming since the early weeks of the season, when results flattered performances and the underlying numbers told a more troubling story.
It is not the time to change manager, and nor do the club’s hierarchy think so. The change has to come from within – approach, attitude, execution. That is on Jaissle and the players, not one or the other.
That is why before the head coach addresses what happened on the pitch, he must clarify to his players what he said off it. To lose matches is one thing, but to risk losing your dressing room is quite another.
That would leave Jaissle facing the one situation from which his ‘vertical football’ could offer no way forward.
