Amar Dedic injury blow a bigger problem for Newcastle United than expected as Matthias Jaissle proved right
Matthias Jaissle made five changes to his Newcastle United side on Sunday and all five ended up justifying their selection.
Changing half of his outfield players was a bold call by Matthias Jaissle for Newcastle United’s trip to Crystal Palace on Sunday.
With successive Premier League defeats piling pressure on his side, the Newcastle head coach needed a response...and he got one.
All five players brought into the starting line-up made a telling contribution, as Newcastle secured a 2-0 win at Selhurst Park.
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Matthias Jaissle changes make big impact
William Osula scored upon his return, assisted by fellow returning player Jacob Murphy. Murphy also played a role in Newcastle’s second goal, feeding the ball to Amar Dedic, another player back in the side, to set up Harvey Barnes.
In addition to the trio, Dan Burn and Fabian Schar started their first Premier League matches at centre-back this season to help the side keep a first clean sheet in six league matches.
The likes of Burn, Schar and Murphy are veterans in this Newcastle side with over 700 appearances for the club between them. They’re experienced heads in the side to call upon in times of need. They won’t always deliver, but they did on this occasion.
The longer-term encouragement, however, came from the returns of Osula and Dedic. Their inclusion helped restore an identity Newcastle had appeared to lose in recent weeks. It took until after half-time for the team to find its rhythm, but the second-half display was one of their most effective under Jaissle.
The Newcastle head coach has faced justified questions over his tactics and system in recent weeks. At Palace, he responded with a second-half performance that offered a convincing reminder of what his side can look like when the pieces fit.
Osula gives the side a physical focal point that Matias Fernandez-Pardo or Yoane Wissa simply haven’t been able to provide. Even if he’s not touching the ball or getting overly involved, he’s occupying defenders and making space for his teammates.
Amar Dedic boost for NUFC
But it’s Dedic, the first signing made by Jaissle at Newcastle and the only player to have played under him previously at Red Bull Salzburg, who offers hope to a system that had lacked structure and identity without him. The 24-year-old, who joined Newcastle from Benfica for £30million in August, contributed three assists in his first four matches for Newcastle from right-back before playing through injury in the 4-1 defeat at Leeds United.
Just how big a miss he was only became apparent upon his return.
When Dedic is fit and available, the green shoots we saw in those opening weeks under Jaissle start to grow once more.
The Bosnian is aggressive, pushing forward and punished Palace by sniffing a potential opportunity before most would even notice one was opening up. As soon as Nico Gonzalez won the ball back for Newcastle in a dangerous area, Dedic was already bombing forward towards the right side of the box, primed to put a low cross in and set up Barnes.
In just six starts, Dedic leads the way for Newcastle for assists this season with four. Without wanting to kick an injured player too hard while he’s down, the right-back has already surpassed Tino Livramento’s assist record in black and white from the same position.
They are different players, of course, but Dedic’s forward-thinking, aggressive style and final ball embodies what Jaissle wants from his side. Without him, Newcastle’s play is predictable and lacks impetus. The same applies on the opposite flank to Lewis Hall, who has already matched his goal-contribution tally from last season.
When asked how important Dedic’s return was to his side, Jaissle said: “Yeah, we missed him as well due to his injury situation. Now he's getting better and better, and you saw that in the beginning of the season, how big of an impact he can have on the team.
“Same on the other side with Hally (Lewis Hall). We need these player profiles in those positions. That helps a lot to play in our way of playing.”