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The new Newcastle United manager was still relatively unfamiliar in England when he took charge of the Magpies this summer.

Less than two years back, FourFourTwo was deep inside Al Ahli’s inner-city training complex in Jeddah, where there was a clear sense of unease. “If he loses this game, the manager might well be sacked,” one Saudi Pro League expert told us that evening as we waited for Matthias Jaissle to walk in for his latest pre-match press conference.

Al Ahli had managed to win only three of their opening eight matches of the new league campaign and were eighth in the standings before the Jeddah derby against title-chasing Al Ittihad, a match set to draw a noisy crowd of 52,546. Considering Jaissle’s side were one of the Saudi Pro League’s big four – all under the ownership of the country’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) – those results were below what was expected.

At that time, the main reason for our visit to Al Ahli was the recent arrival of Ivan Toney rather than Jaissle, who remained largely unknown to British audiences in October 2024. The question put to him was whether he could help his new striker force his way into England’s next World Cup squad – especially as Jaissle knew Thomas Tuchel from their time together in the youth set-up at VfB Stuttgart.

“Let’s see if Thomas calls me and asks how Ivan is doing,” the sharply dressed Jaissle told FFT. “Ivan has the potential, definitely – he must deliver here to be seen in the UK, and we’re doing our best to bring him into the best shape.”

Before this summer’s World Cup, Tuchel did in fact speak to Jaissle about Toney, later saying that the “fantastic feedback” he received was enough to convince him to include the 30-year-old in his squad. By that stage, though, Jaissle could quite easily have already left his post as Al Ahli boss.

He did lose that Jeddah derby to Al Ittihad, a fractious contest disrupted by a sandstorm that carried dust from the nearby desert into the stadium. He kept his job then, but reports suggested he was close to the exit two months later after defeat to Al Kholood, with Max Allegri said to be lined up as his long-term replacement.

That changed when ultras protested at the training ground and displayed a banner reading: “Enough failure, leave!” The message was directed at the club hierarchy rather than the manager. Jaissle remained in place and, within a matter of months, turned himself into an Al Ahli legend.

Jaissle played as a central defender during a career in which he helped Hoffenheim reach the Bundesliga for the first time in 2008, just after turning 20. He had been expected to join Mesut Ozil, Mats Hummels and Manuel Neuer in the Germany under-21 squad that crushed England in the 2009 European Championship final, but he suffered ACL damage shortly before the tournament and was never quite the same player again.

More injuries eventually forced him to retire in 2014 at the age of 25. He then moved into coaching with a youth role at RB Leipzig, where his former Hoffenheim manager Ralf Rangnick had since become a major figure in Red Bull’s football structure. Jaissle embraced a similarly aggressive high-pressing style and has carried it with him ever since. After a spell as assistant coach at Danish club Brondby, he moved to Red Bull Salzburg, guided feeder side FC Liefering to a joint-highest finish, and was then promoted to the top job at the senior club in 2021, replacing Jesse Marsch.

Working with young talents such as Benjamin Sesko, Karim Adeyemi, Noah Okafor and Brenden Aaronson, he led Salzburg to a domestic double in his first season, while also taking them into the Champions League knockout stage for the only time in their history. They were beaten 7-1 by Bayern Munich in the last 16, and Jaissle was still only 33 at the time.

One season later, Salzburg went 30 matches unbeaten on their way to yet another domestic title. It was the club’s 10th successive league crown, but they have not won the league since Jaissle departed that summer. The German joined Al Ahli only a month after they had become one of four clubs taken over by the Saudi PIF, alongside Al Ittihad, Al Hilal and Cristiano Ronaldo’s Al Nassr. Jaissle’s new side had last been Saudi Pro League champions in 2016, but had since been relegated and only returned to the top division in the same summer that he arrived.

They moved quickly in the transfer market, bringing in Riyad Mahrez, Roberto Firmino, Edouard Mendy, Franck Kessie and former Newcastle winger Allan Saint-Maximin. In Jaissle’s first season, they finished a promising third, which was enough to secure qualification for the Asian Champions League.

Then came Toney’s signing, followed by that difficult start to 2024-25 when Jaissle came so close to losing his job. He was fully aware of the pressure when we visited, but gave little away – staying professional throughout and even making time afterwards to greet visiting European media. It was difficult not to take to him.

“Things take time – the club has a long-term vision,” Jaissle told us, in a measured appeal for patience as he tried to turn results around, while also referring to his record of improving young players. “I hope we can do better by implementing the philosophy from the top down to the academy, because at some point we’ll need the young talents. In my eyes, that is the right approach.

“A lot of signings were made before I arrived, so it’s important as a coach that you’re flexible enough to adapt to a new country, culture and player profiles. In the long run, it’s important everyone is aligned, that you improve your squad and players in the way you want to play.”

Jaissle was given the time to carry out that work. Al Ahli’s progress to the knockout stage of the Asian Champions League had helped him avoid the sack, and they produced a much stronger second half of the league season, climbing to fifth before unexpectedly becoming champions of Asia for the first time in their history. The final three rounds of the Champions League were all staged in Jeddah, which gave Al Ahli a useful home advantage, but they still had to beat reigning Saudi champions Al Hilal in the semi-finals before overcoming Japanese side Kawasaki Frontale in the final – the same team that had knocked out Ronaldo’s Al Nassr.

Last season, while finishing third in a three-way domestic title race, they pulled off a Brian Clough-style Nottingham Forest feat and became continental champions again. Toney played a central role, scoring 72 goals across two seasons under Jaissle.

So when PIF-owned Newcastle were searching this summer for a successor to Eddie Howe, it should not really have been a shock that they turned to the German. Howe leaves behind a formidable legacy after delivering the Magpies’ first major trophy in 56 years. But if you can appoint a manager who has won one historic title, why not go for one who has won two?