Matthias Jaissle reveals childhood tumour and reflects on early Newcastle tenure

Newcastle United head coach Matthias Jaissle said he had a tumour in his neck when he was five, speaking as his side sit ninth in the early stages of the Premier League season. Pointing to his neck, Jaissle told reporters: "I had a tumour when I was five years old. Here in my neck so I couldn't move it anymore."

Jaissle said the illness taught him "how important it is to be healthy, and how grateful you can be to be healthy and to follow your dream," and added that "it was not clear that I could play football as a kid anymore." He later played as a defender for Hoffenheim and believed he was close to a senior Germany call-up before suffering a serious knee injury at the age of 20. Jaissle said he "kept the dream for a lot longer than the doctors did," but the setback curtailed his playing career and he retired a few years later in 2014. He has described falling into a dark place after his playing days, and said "that makes you the person you are, whatever aspect it is, with the belief you can overcome every obstacle," adding: "Every setback also has a positive side. If you overcome these challenges then you become stronger, more resilient."

Jaissle said he did not initially plan on coaching, but Ralf Rangnick invited him to participate in a training programme at RB Leipzig where his mentor was working. He was due to be redeployed in a new department every six weeks and began the placement as an assistant youth-team coach to ex team-mate Sebastien Hoeness, who now manages Stuttgart, and was pencilled in to spend time with the club's sporting director and figures from their administrative, commercial and marketing departments. He did not move on to those other roles: "I didn't move on," Jaissle said. "After two weeks, wow, I felt joy back in life."

That change of direction led Jaissle into coaching full time; he climbed the ladder and won trophies at Red Bull Salzburg and Al-Ahli. A senior Newcastle source said of his appointment: "Since the first meeting, it was clear this was our guy." The 38-year-old arrived with no prior Premier League managerial experience after predecessor Eddie Howe stepped down, and described his first weeks as a baptism of fire. He had three weeks to prepare for the visit of Liverpool on the opening weekend while the squad was in flux.

Jaissle said that captain Bruno Guimaraes "was about to follow Anthony Gordon and Sandro Tonali out of the exit door and complete a £75m move to Arsenal at the time," and the club went on to make eight signings, all aged 24 and under, taking the squad from one of the most experienced in the Premier League to one of the youngest almost overnight. A spate of injuries to key players has followed, yet Newcastle have lost only one of Jaissle's opening seven matches in all competitions, a 4-1 defeat at Leeds United.

Reflecting on performances, Jaissle said: "I think there were elements in games where we saw a lot of the things we were looking for. There were also phases in games where we were not happy and satisfied, so there's still a lot of potential that we can improve." He accepted it had been "tougher than expected" to "get stuff into the players' heads" given pre-season was "so short and packed with friendly matches we couldn't change," but added "but considering all these things, we're doing good." He also said he remains convinced his aggressive approach and so-called vertical football will "work anywhere."

Statistically, Newcastle have made the most errors leading to shots (12) in the Premier League this season while Jaissle's side have averaged "little more than three efforts on target per match" in the top flight. Jaissle said he has been struck by the supporters' backing and is settling into life on Tyneside: he moved out of a hotel into a new home earlier this week and has ventured into the city to sample restaurants "but only to celebrate wins." After the 2-1 victory against Hull City at St James' Park he paid for a supporter's birthday meal and said: "I really love the fans and the people here."

It feels like there will be ups and downs throughout, given the age of the side, but Jaissle remains convinced his methods will succeed even as the team remains a work in progress at this early stage of his reign.