Phenomenon Nick Woltemade Has Graceful Flow To Be Isak’s Substitute

Now Nick Woltemade is heading to Tyneside, we tin publication retired nan summertime last scores. Premier League 2 Bayern Munich 0, aft Florian Wirtz precocious described his determination to take Liverpool up of Bayern – which profoundly shocked galore successful Germany, not slightest nan perennial champions themselves – arsenic “taking nan much difficult option” successful bid to champion create his talents.

Woltemade, alternatively than waiting for a move to Munich adjacent summer, has followed his world workfellow successful taking nan plunge. The Germany No 9 garment beckons astatine adjacent summer’s World Cup and nan man who will presumably beryllium wearing that number astatine St James’ Park is prepared to prehend his opportunity.

The summertime is not ending really Newcastle aliases Woltemade had envisaged, pinch nan erstwhile having imagined Alexander Isak starring them backmost into nan Champions League and nan second having pictured himself successful Bayern red. Yet location is nary emotion of this being a consolation prize for either successful this (until recently) improbable partnership.

Eddie Howe is receiving a quickly processing talent, a unicorn, a 6ft 6in striker pinch an uncommonly graceful travel who is difficult to comparison to immoderate subordinate retired location successful his position. Woltemade gets a ace astatine English shot and astatine nan Champions League knowing that he has a chance to really thrive successful some should he proceed his existent complaint of progression. It is simply a transportation that has travel retired of leftfield successful a sense, pinch Newcastle’s recruiters putting together a woody connected nan down-low (and needfully so, fixed nan number of gazumpings to which they person been taxable successful nan caller past), but it makes cleanable sense.

Replacing Isak directly is intelligibly impossible, but location is overmuch successful Woltemade’s crippled to make him a logical substitute. Despite his size he is astatine easiness pinch nan shot astatine his feet, a prolific dribbler pinch nan deft touch to bring others into play. His 17 goals past season, helping Stuttgart to DfB Pokal triumph (a first awesome trophy successful 18 years), look moreover amended erstwhile 1 considers his slow commencement to nan campaign. Then successful nan European Under-21 Championship he was the six-goal apical scorer, which included a hat-trick against Slovenia to footwear disconnected nan tourney and an absolute bullying of France’s adjacent large things successful nan semi-final, earlier Germany mislaid to England successful a thrilling final.

It is simply a stratospheric rise. When he joined Stuttgart from Werder Bremen successful May 2024, it wasn’t large news. He had started to get immoderate Bundesliga minutes astatine Werder but he was seen arsenic a low-risk, high-reward fund (free transfer) pick-up for Sebastian Hoeness and company, arsenic they sought to screen nan nonaccomplishment of Serhou Guirassy and beef up nan squad for Champions League participation.

The talent had been clear from erstwhile Woltemade became Werder’s youngest Bundesliga debutant successful 2020 a fewer weeks earlier his 18th birthday, but he was a slow burner. The erstwhile Bayern and Chelsea guardant Claudio Pizarro, who was successful his 4th spell astatine Bremen and nan last play of his profession astatine nan time, described him arsenic “quiet and shy”. His modesty is clear. During Stuttgart’s Pokal celebrations instantly aft nan full-time whistle he was obscurity to beryllium seen – he was disconnected comforting Arminia Bielefeld’s losing players. But he is simply a phenomenon. He is nary longer conscionable Woltemade, arsenic 1 German journalist put it, but Big Nick.

Nick Woltemade has been moving connected his back-to-goal crippled to sizeable occurrence astatine Stuttgart. Photograph: Bernd Weißbrod/AP

When a subordinate takes nan high-speed elevator successful nan Bundesliga, it is usually stopping astatine only 1 destination. Bayern weren’t conscionable looking astatine him arsenic screen for (and an eventual successor to) Harry Kane. There was existent belief among nan club’s level that Woltemade had nan devices to complement nan England captain, playing conscionable disconnected him and helping – successful nan short word – to screen for nan absence of Jamal Musiala, who could beryllium retired until Christmas aft nan superior wounded he sustained astatine nan Club World Cup. Their imagination for him is simply a immense compliment to his talent.

Bayern could not get their heads astir Stuttgart’s demands. They began nan summertime quoting Bayern €100m (£86.5m) but moreover erstwhile it felt arsenic if they mightiness judge astir €70m, Bayern ne'er sewage close. Their last connection is thought to person been astir nan €50m mark. Either way, obscurity adjacent what Newcastle were prepared to pay, aft which “football successful Germany is near breathless”, arsenic Mario Krischel wrote successful Kicker.

It is simply a calculated bet for Newcastle but moreover if they are paying nan higher fig wide quoted successful nan German media – a guaranteed €85m rising to €90m pinch bonuses – it feels for illustration money amended spent than it would person been connected Jørgen Strand Larsen, pinch Woltemade 2 years younger and pinch intelligibly a higher ceiling. Stuttgart’s sporting director, Fabian Wohlgemuth, and main executive, Alexander Wehrle, who person played this smartly, had their position strengthened by Woltemade’s demeanour. He had made plain that he wanted to subordinate Bayern, agreed connected nan parameters of a statement pinch nan Bundesliga champions and moreover instructed his supplier to show different perchance willing clubs – including Napoli and Real Madrid – that he wasn’t willing successful talking to them.

Yet dissimilar nan man he is apt to switch astatine his caller club, Woltemade ne'er came adjacent to downing tools. “He has to study still,” Pizarro told a group of world journalists connected nan day of nan Super Cup, “because he is really large but sometimes he doesn’t usage his assemblage for illustration he could, nor people galore goals pinch nan head.” (Only 1 of Woltemade’s 12 Bundesliga goals past play was headed.) A fewer hours later, arsenic he ploughed a lone furrow pinch Stuttgart nether Bayern’s thumb, it was clear conscionable really difficult Woltemade had been moving connected his back-to-goal game, to sizeable success. That attitude, and his authorities of grace, propose Newcastle whitethorn person a caller darling successful their midst.