Eddie Howe Exits Newcastle with Immediate Effect as Jaissle Lines Up to Take Over

Eddie Howe is departing Newcastle United with immediate effect after five years as manager, with Al-Ahli boss Matthias Jaissle reported as the frontrunner to succeed him.

The decision follows a 4-1 pre-season friendly defeat to Championship side Bristol City at Ashton Gate. After the result, Howe gave a pointed indication that his grip on the club’s direction had weakened, particularly in light of Arsenal‘s pursuit of Bruno Guimaraes.

“What will be, will be. We can’t control the forces that are at play here, we’ve just got to make sure that when Bruno comes back, we look after him and he trains well, which I’m sure he will do. And he makes a difference as he always has done.”

Howe joined Newcastle in November 2021 following the sacking of Steve Bruce, arriving just weeks after Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund completed their takeover. He inherited a side in deep trouble, and the Magpies won 12 of their final 18 league games to finish 11th — becoming the first team in Premier League history to avoid relegation after going winless in their opening 14 fixtures.

He signed a long-term extension in August 2022. That season, he led Newcastle to the League Cup final, where they lost to Manchester United. The following campaign brought a top-four finish and a return to the Champions League for the first time in 20 years, though the club finished bottom of their group with five points. Howe also oversaw a 3-0 FA Cup third-round win over Sunderland at the Stadium of Light in January 2024 — his first Tyne-Wear derby in charge. The 2025 League Cup final delivered Newcastle’s first major trophy in 56 years, a win over Liverpool. Despite a second Champions League qualification, the 2025-26 season produced only a 12th-place finish, with both fixtures against newly-promoted Sunderland — who ended the season in seventh — resulting in defeats.

Before Newcastle, Howe spent his entire playing career at Bournemouth, apart from two appearances for Portsmouth in the early 2000s. He moved into management at Bournemouth in 2008, left for Burnley in 2011, then returned to the south coast in 2012. Over eight years, he led the Cherries to their first-ever Premier League promotion.

Jaissle, the German 38-year-old tipped to take the role, managed Red Bull Salzburg from 2021 to 2023, winning the Austrian Bundesliga in back-to-back seasons, before moving to Al-Ahli in Saudi Arabia. He has since claimed consecutive Asian Champions League titles with the club.

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