Football: Leeds manager Wise to quit and join Newcastle.

Byline: BY DAMIAN SPELLMAN Daily Post Correspondent

LEEDS manager Dennis Wise will leave the club for Newcastle today as the Magpies continue their rebuilding programme.

The Yorkshire club confirmed yesterday afternoon they have agreed a compensation package with the Magpies and it is understood the 41-year-old will take up a role at St James' Park similar to the one currently occupied by Frank Arnesen at Chelsea.

Wise will not be involved in day-to-day team affairs, but will oversee the remaining activities on the football side.

Manager Kevin Keegan declined to comment on speculation that the former member of Wimbledon's Crazy Gang was on his way to the club as he conducted his pre-match press conference for tonight's Barclays Premier League trip to Arsenal.

However, Leeds later confirmed the move in a statement on their website.

It read: "We have agreed a compensation package with Newcastle United for the services of our manager Dennis Wise and he will part company with the club on Tuesday January 29 after completing the preparations for our game at Southend United that evening.

"Newcastle had approached us for permission to speak with Dennis on Friday and since then things have happened very quickly.

"We will always be grateful to Dennis for the way he has turned things around at the club on the playing side and he goes with our best wishes for the future.

"We are not prepared to comment on the inevitable speculation that will now follow about who will replace Dennis. That is not the way we do our business at this club."

The news came as Keegan approached the two-week mark in his second spell on Tyneside, a fortnight which has been nothing if not eventful.

That, coupled with Newcastle missing out on transfer target Jonathan Woodgate over the weekend, has led some bookmakers to slash the odds on him being the next Premier League manager to go, although that is perhaps a little extreme less than a fortnight into his second spell on Tyneside.

The 56-year-old, who was hoping to hold further talks with Alan Shearer about his proposed return to St James' Park last night, however insisted the speculation was a matter for chairman Chris Mort, who is currently away from the club.

Asked if he could comment on the situation, he said: "Not really other than to say that's a question for Chris Mort, the chairman, to answer when he comes back.

"He will be back on Wednesday or Thursday. I am just wanting to concentrate on Arsenal."

While Keegan insists he is happy with the quality of players he has at his disposal, he was disappointed to miss out on Woodgate, although he revealed his prospective switch to Tottenham was all but complete before he made his move.

He said: "We have got to be realistic. When I look at the whole thing, I think Jonathan Woodgate had made a commitment already to another club and the deal was seven-eighths done before I even came to this club.

"That's the advantage of clubs being able to plan for four or five weeks of a transfer window, not two weeks.

"I jumped in because I thought there was an opportunity there - and I genuinely believed there was - but we were not able to take advantage of sweet-talking and things like that.

"I know Jonathan very well and I knew Middlesbrough were prepared to sell him, so that gave me the chance to have an input there.

"I tried my best and it didn't quite work. The lad had made a promise already and given his word. He didn't go back on it and that's to his credit.

"To be honest with you, we did say at the start that unless we could get quality players in who were going to better us, we would not get any in."

Keegan will be boosted tonight by the return of midfielder Joey Barton to the squad - and probably to the substitutes bench - following a change in the conditions of his bail.

CAPTION(S):

Dennis Wise is leaving his post as Leeds United manager today; Kevin Keegan