Elanga and Wissa revitalised: that is the early-season verdict on Matthias Jaissle’s Newcastle United, after a 2-0 win at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium underlined just how quickly his ideas are landing on Tyneside.
Yoane Wissa scored his first goal of the season on Saturday, hooking the ball past Antonin Kinsky after Nick Woltemade headed down Lewis Hall’s inswinging corner. Anthony Elanga had opened the scoring earlier, turning past Sandro Tonali and sweeping a left-footed finish off the post and in. Two players, two goals, one message: the new manager is getting through.
Wissa names Jaissle his ‘best signing’ after Spurs win
Wissa did not hold back after the final whistle. Despite seven new arrivals at the club this summer, he used his post-match interview to hand that title to the manager himself. ‘For sure, Eddie Howe has done a top job at the club so we need to respect that,’ Wissa told Sky Sports. ‘But the new manager came with a new identity, and that is something we have been working on. Every part of the game is precise and, of course, he is a really dynamic manager so we need to give everything. But, yes, I think he is the best signing of Newcastle so far.’
Alan Shearer had set the challenge publicly before kick-off. Speaking to Betfair earlier in the week, Newcastle’s record goalscorer said: ‘Last season was a real disappointment for Newcastle and for him personally, but he had a decent World Cup and I thought he was absolutely outstanding against Liverpool. If that’s what we can expect, then that’s something to look forward to.’
Wissa answered that. He won the most duels of any Newcastle player for the second successive Premier League match, and his goal made sure of the three points. It is a far cry from a debut season on Tyneside that was wrecked by injuries and fitness concerns.
Elanga and Wissa revitalised: what Jaissle has done differently
Elanga’s transformation has been just as dramatic. Other than Champions League performances against Barcelona and Union SG, he failed to reproduce the form that had brought six goals and 12 assists for Nottingham Forest the previous season. Howe repeatedly backed him publicly, saying the winger would take time to learn the ‘Newcastle Way’. Under Jaissle, the wait is over.
Elanga has now become the first Newcastle player to score in their first two Premier League games of the season since Shearer. His partnership down the right with Amar Dedic is already clicking: Nico Gonzalez’s crossfield pass released Dedic in behind Andy Robertson, and the delivery into Elanga’s path was clinical. Sky Sports pundit Jamie Redknapp put it plainly: ‘Already it looks like he is getting more out of players than Eddie Howe was towards the end of last season, the likes of Elanga and Wissa. Elanga with his pace looks sharp.’
So what exactly is Jaissle doing? According to The Athletic, pressing, intensity and verticality (getting the ball forwards quickly) are three key foundations of his philosophy, and they have been drummed into the squad repeatedly. The Tottenham performance was a live demonstration: Dedic and Hall pushed as high as the midfield, effectively operating as second wingers in possession, while Elanga, Joe Willock and Harvey Barnes all held higher average positions than Wissa, who started as the central striker.
That shape is bold. If it breaks down, Newcastle could be exposed on the counter. But right now it is producing results and giving the squad an identity it lacked at the end of last season.
Jaissle has also built his own backroom around these principles. The Athletic reports that Alexander Hauser, Engin Yanova and Florens Koch have joined as assistant coaches, with Maximilian Fischer and Steffen Konrad brought in as analysts and Alexander Bade added as goalkeeper coach. It is a full staff overhaul designed to embed a new way of working from the training pitch outward.
Tactical flexibility sits alongside the pressing game. Yahoo Sports has outlined how Jaissle can operate across a 4-4-2 diamond, a 4-3-3 and a 4-2-3-1, giving him options to shift shape mid-game or between fixtures. At Spurs, that verticality was there from the off: Lewis Miley and Gonzalez provided the quick ball out of midfield, the full-backs drove into space, and the forwards hunted in behind.
Two games in, Newcastle have drawn with Liverpool and won at Tottenham. Elanga and Wissa are already running, and the backroom is built to keep them going. The fixtures will get harder. The foundation, for now, looks solid.