This means Nick Woltemade nonsense can now be put to bed | OneFootball

The Nick Woltemade situation was strange.

An up and coming young German talent who having finally got his chance of regular Bundesliga football, had experienced a massive 2024/25 breakthrough season.

Last season in the Bundesliga with Stuttgart, Nick Woltemade averaged a goal every 135 minutes he was on the pitch (1,621 Bundesliga minutes played in the 2024/25 season, scoring 12 goals). The striker alternating between starting (17 times) in the league and coming off the bench (11 times).

On top of that, Nick Woltemade scored five goals last season in the German Cup, including one in the final that helped Stuttgart pick up silverware ahead of his departure.

That departure was taken for granted to be set to be Bayern Munich, with the dominant Bundesliga serial champions seeing Nick Woltemade as the eventual replacement for the ageing Harry Kane. Bayern Munich annoying Stuttgart though, making a series of offers well below the club’s valuation, the third and what proved to be the final one being £52m.

A massive hit for the Germany Under 21s (top scorer at the summer Under 21 Euros finals with six goals), the young striker also given his debut this summer for the Germany senior side.

As I indicated at the start of this article though, this Nick Woltemade situation turned very strange.

As soon as Newcastle United successfully swooped and paid £65m (plus a potential £4.3m in future add-ons), suddenly this was a ridiculous signing, to bring in Nick Woltemade.

All very puzzling. Newcastle United had paid £13m more than the £52m finally offered by Bayern, a figure that Stuttgart had seen as disrespectful.

Most of the German media, especially with major figures connected to Bayern Munich pushing it, desperate to ridicule Newcastle United and Nick Woltemade.

None of this made sense. What had been seen as an obvious and excellent signing by Bayern to be Kane’s successor, was now hopeless, apparently.

The English media of course, more than happy to also go down this line. Desperate to continue a narrative of disastrous Newcastle United transfer window, missing out on players etc etc, yet not wanting to acknowledge the quality that HAD been signed – Elanga, Ramsdale, Thiaw, Ramsey, Wissa and….Nick Woltemade.

Six starts later for Newcastle United and five goals, just WOW!!!

This is an absolutely elite signing by Eddie Howe, yet again.

Not all signings settle as quicky as others.

Especially young relatively inexperienced strikers moving to a new league, a new country, a new culture, a new club, new teammates, a whole different life.

Add in zero pre-season with NUFC and signed very late in the transfer window…

What Nick Woltemade has achieved is just plain ridiculous.

His general play is outstanding, when Newcastle United play to his strengths, which is an ongoing process of the team learning how to do their bit, the new striker as well. However, when Nick Woltemade gets the ball into his feet then he is just top class, running with the ball and his lay-offs etc.

Two towering headers showing great strength against established Premier League central defenders and giving the keeper no chance.

A quality flick with his back to goal away at Union S-G that bizarrely saw the media desperate to give him no credit for, just lucky…apparently.

Then that penalty against Forest, incredible technique and confidence.

Finally, so far, that top top class flick with his heel at Brighton, more luck???

The media reporting on Nick Woltemade was incredibly poor, both in the UK and especially in Germany, willing him to fail.

What he has achieved so far is outstanding.