Eddie Howe is reportedly set to leave Newcastle in a shock summer exit as Matthias Jaissle is lined up as his replacement.
The Athletic reported on Thursday morning that Howe has informed the club of his desire for a break after five years in charge at St James’ Park and will step down imminently.
The surprise decision comes after Howe’s future on Tyneside was subject to significant doubt throughout a tough 2025/26 season that ended with Newcastle finishing in 12th place in the Premier League.
Newcastle reached the last 16 of the Champions League, but were thrashed 8-3 on aggregate by Barcelona, while they lost 5-1 over two legs to Manchester City - who also beat them in the FA Cup fifth round - in the Carabao Cup semi-finals.
A decision was made after the campaign to keep the former Bournemouth and Burnley boss in position, but he has now decided to relinquish the reins just hours after his side were defeated 4-1 by Championship outfit Bristol City in a pre-season friendly at Ashton Gate on Wednesday night.
Howe is set to be quickly replaced at Newcastle by German Jaissle, the former Red Bull Salzburg manager who is currently the head coach of Saudi Pro League club Al-Ahli.
Newcastle had begun pre-season with a 3-0 win over Darlington and 1-1 draw with Gateshead, kicking off a second successive summer that had so far been dominated by high-profile transfer sagas involving the likes of Bruno Guimaraes, Sandro Tonali and Anthony Gordon.
Guimaraes is widely expected to join Arsenal after Tonali and Gordon left for Tottenham and Barcelona respectively, with Newcastle attempting to compensate for those significant losses with the signings of Bazoumana Toure, Aladji Bamba, Sean Steur and Ewen Jaouen.
Last summer, Newcastle sold striker Alexander Isak to Liverpool in a British record deal worth £125million following a long and drawn-out saga. Further big-money sales have been required this summer after they missed out on European qualification altogether.
Howe will undoubtedly go down as a Newcastle legend, remembered as the manager who ended their 70-year major trophy drought as they beat Liverpool 2-1 in the 2024/25 Carabao Cup final at Wembley.
He also qualified for and oversaw two campaigns in the Champions League - a competition that Newcastle previously had not reached since 2002/03 - that featured some truly memorable moments, including a remarkable 4-1 thrashing of Paris Saint-Germain at St James’ Park in October 2023.
