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Eddie Howe confirms he made a U-turn on his decision to bring Nick Woltemade on before affording him just four minutes of regulation time during Newcastle United’s defeat to Bournemouth.
While Woltemade hasn’t always covered himself in glory in a Newcastle United shirt, he has scored seven Premier League goals this season.
All opinions welcome but I would LOVE to know how you think Howe can turn this around….
It’s the same thing every week!
Credit: Getty Images/Stu Forster
As such, it’s reasonable for fans to expect the German – the most expensive signing in the club’s history – to get more than a few minutes before the end of the game.
Howe eventually turned to him in the 86th minute mark, two minutes later than his introduction against Crystal Palace last weekend as Newcastle United lost in abject fashion to Bournemouth.
Woltemade was set to come on before Newcastle’s goal changed plans
Asked whether the striker could have come on earlier than he eventually did, Howe said: “Of course he could have done. I was potentially going to bring him on just before we scored. The goal made me change my decision and that is often the way the scoreline can to a degree.
“Who scores changes your decision making in that moment and, yeah, I thought Nick did okay when he came on.
“Of course, I want him on as much as anybody else but I’ve always got to do what I think is right for the team in that moment.”
That, in Howe’s defence, is reasonably sound logic in this specific example. Goals do change the state of games, after all.
Who was Newcastle United’s biggest flop against Bournemouth and why? 😡
Photo by Alex Livesey/Getty Images
However, the issues run deeper than that. While Woltemade has underperformed since joining Newcastle United from Stuttgart, merely being handed a few minutes here and there is not conducive to building confidence levels.
William Osula is playing well in his absence and is arguably a better stylistic fit for the way in which Howe’s teams generally operate. The less said about Yoane Wissa’s first season at the club, meanwhile, the better.
Photo by Paul ELLIS / AFP via Getty Images
Still, it does seem strange that Howe has consistently overlooked Woltemade as a starting striker for what feels like an age now. That’s not to say that he can answer every problem right now, just that overlooking him is notable given the size of the transfer fee and the fact he has scored goals this season.
Woltemade may never be the right man to lead the line for Newcastle in a Howe team. A complete lack of action is not helping him mount much of a defence to that view, however.
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