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The Al-Ahli head coach appears set to take charge at Newcastle United after Eddie Howe's exit, and he has already submitted his resignation.

Matthias Jaissle, who is in line to become Newcastle United's new manager, has handed in his resignation at Al-Ahli because of a contractual dispute, according to reports from Saudi Arabia.

Newcastle are understood to be in advanced negotiations with the German coach as they look for Eddie Howe's successor after Howe decided to leave the role on Thursday.

Howe stepped down after talks with the club's hierarchy following a disappointing 2025/26 season, during which key players Anthony Gordon was sold to Barcelona and Sandro Tonali to Tottenham, while captain Bruno Guimaraes is also expected to complete a move to Arsenal.

It soon became clear that Newcastle had opened discussions with 38-year-old Jaissle over a switch to St James' Park.

Jaissle has just guided Al-Ahli to back-to-back AFC Champions League Elite titles, having earlier won two Austrian Bundesliga crowns as Red Bull Salzburg manager.

Saudi publication Al-Riyadh has reported that Jaissle has submitted his resignation to Al-Ahli, although it has not yet been accepted and he officially remains in charge for now.

Al-Ahli are now reportedly working on appointing a replacement, with Jaissle's departure expected to become a formality.

However, it appears his resignation was not submitted specifically to take the Newcastle job, but instead followed a disagreement over the terms of a contract renewal.

Al-Riyadh says Jaissle wanted a clause in the new deal stating that he would receive his full salary if he were dismissed from the position.

The club were unwilling to agree to that demand and instead offered a maximum payout of six months' salary, which led the head coach to hand in his resignation.

Newcastle are now aiming to reshape their squad as they try to improve on last season's 12th-place finish.

United had qualified for the Champions League the previous season by finishing fifth.

The club have already reinvested part of the money raised from the sales of Gordon and Tonali, with goalkeeper Ewen Jaouen, winger Bazoumana Toure, and midfielders Sean Steur and Aladji Bamba all arriving for a combined £111m.