'Definitely' - Matthias Jaissle explains Yoane Wissa Newcastle United captaincy decision
Millwall 0-1 Newcastle United: Yoane Wissa captained Newcastle for the first time as they beat Millwall
Newcastle United’s leadership group officially confirmed another member as Yoane Wissa captained the club for the first time.
The 30-year-old, who joined Newcastle from Brentford for £55million last year, had a difficult start to his career on Tyneside but has established himself as a key player in Matthias Jaissle’s new-look side in the opening weeks of the season.
And with captain Dan Burn and vice-captain Joelinton out injured and Malick Thiaw on the bench, Wissa was handed the armband for the Carabao Cup third-round clash at Millwall.
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Newcastle progressed to the last 16 in the competition thanks to a late strike from Joe Willock, which stretched Jaissle’s unbeaten start as head coach to five matches.
Wissa has started four of Newcastle’s five matches so far this season, grabbing a goal and an assist. It comes after he was limited to just eight starts in all competitions last season, none of which came after February.
But the DR Congo international has already impressed Jaissle with his conduct on and off the pitch, emerging as a new leader in the squad.
“Wiss is, among some other players also a leader, definitely,” Jaissle told The Gazette. “He showed that from the start, when we joined already in the training camp [in La Manga], that he can communicate a lot, he has positive energy, and he performs also on the pitch at the moment, so that was the reason behind [naming him as captain v Millwall].”
When asked about Wissa’s change in role and fortunes at Newcastle this season, Jaissle added: “I had conversations with him, like with many other players, and unfortunately I cannot compare with Eddie [Howe], and that's something I will never do, because I give him always the maximum amount of respect for what he did here.
“Sometimes it's also on the players. They have some lows, then they have some highs in their career, this is normal.”
Yoane Wissa on his NUFC improvement
After scoring in Newcastle’s win at Tottenham Hotspur last month, Wissa expressed his delight playing for the club and explained his marked improvement in the early stages of the new season.