Jaissle on transfers, captaincy and 3-1 defeat to Everton
After the disappointing defeat to Everton, Matheus Jaissle was asked a number of questions by journalists. Transfers were an obvious topic of discussion.
While it was not a great performance, it was only a preseason game. Newcastle looked much better early, but a mistake from Thiaw, which left Botman short, started the downfall. A pretty weak penalty would make it 2-0 and from there the game fell off.
The second half saw an entirely new outfield squad, and despite scoring, it was clear the first-half side was the stronger.
The squad needs bodies
We all know the squad needs bodies, and Jaissle is also well aware of it.
"You all see the matches, you're smart enough to see the needs in the squad.
”We handle these things internally. And the same will be then also on the transfer market scene. Hopefully, there's progress."
And if we needed a hint at the “issue” and the vacuum that Jaissle spoke about, then his quotes about the youth of the squad spoke to that.
"You cannot change things really quickly. It's a really young team at the moment."
Takeaway on the game
The game did have some good sparks at least, and crucially it was against a Premier League side.
“We played against a Premier League competitor today. Unfortunately, today after the first goal it was a setup. This is something we need to address.”
We also got an update on the captaincy, and it looks like we might see a few more players trialled as captain.
“Not closer than I told you,” Jaissle said when asked whether he is ready to name a captain. For sure, not publicly. Closer (yes), but at the right time I will let you know.”
Two games to go
The struggle now is we have two games to go, and realistically, a new player isn’t likely to play in those games unless we get a deal like Steur or Bamba. The new boss clearly knows what areas of the pitch he’s weak in, and the squad needs starters.
We’ve had some exciting players join; Toure has impressed, but once again proves how weak our right side is instead. Elanga has flashes, but the right side needs help. Both at full back and at right wing.
The other key role is that attacking midfield role. Willock had one amazing pass, which Murphy failed to score from. Woltemade actually played as a striker tonight, and he just never looked likely to score.
There’s a week to go before Liverpool, and three weeks to go until the end of the window. The squad is not ready, but there’s time to put things right, and there’s money to do it.
