Keith Wyness suggests the real reason Eddie Howe quit Newcastle

Eddie Howe's decision to walk away from Newcastle United is symptomatic of the "dysfunctional setup" behind the scenes at the club.

That is according to former Everton chief executive Keith Wyness, speaking exclusively to Football Insider, who believes that PIF won't have "frustration" with Howe over the timing of his exit.

This comes after the news that the 48-year-old has stepped down from his role at St James' Park, with official confirmation expected imminently.

Wyness believes that the lack of stability at the club on and off the pitch has been the major contributing factor to his decision.

Howe has made it clear to PIF that he intends to take a break from football altogether, with Al Ahli boss Matthias Jaissle already lined up as his replacement.

The 38-year-old German has won back-to-back Asian Champions League titles during his time in Saudi Arabia, but has never managed in Europe's big five leagues.

'Eddie Howe wanted to handle major decisions'

Everton’s former chief Wyness – who served as CEO at Goodison Park between 2004 and 2009 and now runs a football consultancy advising elite clubs – believes that Howe was hugely keen to operate in a "coach-led" structure at Newcastle.

The former boardroom man made it clear that the ex-Bournemouth boss wanted to operate in the style of a traditional manager, and take ownership of key decisions at the club.

Instead, PIF have overhauled the setup behind the scenes, with a new sporting director and chief executive both arriving within the last 12 months.

Wyness believes that Howe has ultimately been prevented from implementing the leadership style that he prefers.

"“I don’t think there’ll be frustration from PIF’s point of view. It’s just an indication of a very dysfunctional setup at the moment," he said.

“It seems that Howe was very much a coach-led structure, and he wanted to handle a lot of the major decisions. A new sporting director has come in, and it does seem that the PIF structure seems to be very slow in making decisions. 

"“The whole thing is pretty unstable, and I think he’s decided that he can’t lead the way that he wants to, and he’s decided to go."

Bruno Guimaraes next to leave after Howe bombshell

Former Manchester United chief scout Mick Brown has told Football Insider that Howe has had a "very difficult" job at Newcastle of late.

The ex-recruitment man outlined that the boss has lost several of his key players in the last 12 months, and has not been getting "top-level" replacements.

Bruno Guimaraes appears increasingly likely to be the next man to leave St James', with Arsenal still pushing to take him to the Emirates Stadium.

Brown believes that the headline exits have left Howe "hamstrung" by the club hierarchy, and his patience has finally now expired.