Newcastle United have been told they need to hold their nerve and stay true to Matthias Jaissle this season, despite a former star exclusively revealing to TEAMtalk the factors that could lead the club to get dragged into an unexpected relegation battle this season.

The Magpies turned to the highly-rated German over the summer after Eddie Howe decided he did not have the energy to continue in the role, despite five hugely successful years at St James’ Park, which had seen the club qualify for the Champions League twice and collect a first domestic trophy in 70 years in the Carabao Cup.

As a result, the club was always likely to face something of a season of transition, with the players getting used to a new man’s methods and with the 38-year-old putting his own stamp on the side by signing a raft of young talent to replace three established stars who left over the summer.

But despite a strong start to his reign, Newcastle have since fallen away, with Jaissle suffering five losses in their last eight games across all competitions to leave the club 12th in the table, but much closer to the bottom three than the top four.

With that in mind, Jaissle has been the subject of strong speculation that his reign at St James’ Park could come to an abrupt halt, though TEAMtalk has been quick to insist that Newcastle were giving no thought to terminating the German’s contract and were very much thinking towards a long-term vision with the former Al-Ahli boss at the helm.

Furthermore, the club has been quick to blunt out wild speculation that they could make an audacious move to appoint former Liverpool boss Arne Slot as his successor, with sources underlining Newcastle are very much behind their manager and despite claims by the Daily Mail’s Craig Hope that some of his players were struggling to follow his instructions.

Chris Waddle tells Newcastle not to panic over Jaissle

However, former Newcastle star and club icon, Chris Waddle, is urging his boyhood club not to panic, and insists the project under Jaissle was always going to take time.

Speaking exclusively to TEAMtalk in association with iGaming.com, which reviews the best online casinos for UK players, Waddle said: “It’s very hard to follow Eddie Howe. Plus, you’ve arguably lost your three best players, and you’ve got players getting a year older like Dan Burn and Fabian Schär.

“The whole thing needs a bit of a revamp. They brought in three under-21s to replace players like [Anthony] Gordon, [Bruno] Guimarães, and [Sandro] Tonali –  you’re asking an awful lot to replace that Premier League-proven quality with promising youngsters who are essentially learning on the job.

“They’ll be looking over their shoulder all season, though. They’re in that group with Palace, Ipswich, and Coventry –  about eight or nine teams that will be looking over their shoulder and will be worried about being dragged into a relegation battle.

“They’re a lot more likely to be involved in a fight for survival than fighting for a place in Europe, which is a shame considering where the club has been in more recent years.”

Despite that, Waddle has liked what Jaissle has tried to implement since taking charge at St James’ Park and believes that, in time, his methods will pay off.

“The manager has tried to play on the front foot, which Newcastle fans want and demand, but he’s found it hard.

“We know Newcastle run out of steam after 60 to 65 minutes because they play at such a high, unsustainable tempo. When you’re making changes, are the replacement players at the same level?”

Pressed more on the possibility of relegation, Waddle added: “The loss of those three experienced players was massive. Anthony Gordon is young, but he has years of Premier League experience. Tonali and Guimarães were hugely influential.

“When people talk about Newcastle, those were the names everyone mentioned, and now they’ve gone.

“If he [Jaissle] finishes halfway up the league, that’s something to build on. I wouldn’t press the panic button on him yet, but they will definitely be looking over their shoulder.”

Indeed, rather than consider axing their manager, sources have revealed that Newcastle plan to support their boss by bringing in some additional players to bolster the squad in January.

One man we can reveal they are looking at is Coventry’s best player, whom Frank Lampard faces a battle to keep beyond the winter window.

Jaissle also wants another striker option, and sources can reveal that the Magpies had scouts in attendance last week to check out a 115-goal striker add to his tally in Europa League action.

We also understand that Newcastle are among the admirers of a top AC Milan centre-back, who has quickly established himself as one of the first names on Ruben Amorim’s teamsheet.