As a long-term investment Wissa’s £55m move is a difficult sell – but the football logic is immaculate
To those who have worked with him closely, Yoane Wissa makes an unlikely poster boy for the ills of modern football.
“A diamond” is how one associate describes him. “Really nice guy,” is a succinct summary from another.
Phil Giles, the Brentford director of football who sparred with Wissa’s agent during a summer standoff over his transfer to Newcastle United, calls him an “infectious character” who was “positive with players and fans” during his time in West London.
Indeed, the pair are back on speaking terms and all appears to be forgiven after a summer of friction as Wissa tried to force his way out the club.
Those character references should assuage any concerns on Tyneside about the calibre of person Newcastle United recruited on Monday to fill the No 9 shirt.
The Magpies’ hierarchy have certainly done their research on Wissa, the man who will almost certainly start against Wolves when Premier League battle resumes after the international break in a fortnight’s time.
When push came to shove on Sunday night – and internally the prospect of reintegrating Alexander Isak was viewed as “impossible” given the perfect storm of factors swirling around the 25-year-old – it was Eddie Howe who pushed most vehemently for Newcastle to shake hands on a £55m figure that was Brentford’s final “take it or leave it” figure.
Having spent the summer fending off lower bids from Newcastle while they sourced a replacement, the Bees pivoted their strategy to putting a big number in front of the Magpies.
Indeed, it was a figure so big that it required sign-off from owners PIF. With Howe pushing for investment rather than the perfect deal, co-owner Jamie Reuben worked with the Saudi end to sanction the bid and things got done “very, very quickly” in the words of one figure close to negotiations.
As a long-term investment it is a difficult sell. £55m on a four-year contract is a hefty commitment, PSR-wise, for a player who will be 33 when his deal expires and is unlikely to retain much of that value.
But the football logic is immaculate. Wissa improves Newcastle instantly and enables them to hit the target of European qualification that the club’s coaching team have been set by ownership.
Howe is delighted to get his man. Newcastle have over-spent, clearly, but he is a “plug in and play” option and it’s not an exaggeration to say Wissa’s signing has the potential to save the season of a club who have looked utterly toothless while Isak mounted a personal picket line.
There will need to be an adjustment with Wissa leading the line – but not by that much. Clearly he does not have the capacity for magic which made Isak such a gem, but he is regarded as one of the best finishers in the league.
With Newcastle keen to unleash Anthony Gordon and Anthony Elanga down either wing, the plan will be to get the ball to Wissa in the box as much as they can. If that happens enough, he’ll score goals.
Howe and his nephew Andy – who was de facto director of football this summer – were both singing from the same hymn sheet. Wissa’s hold up play is unorthodox but good and he has the power and pace to pick up at Newcastle where he left off at Brentford.
If there is advice from those who have worked with him for Newcastle it is to play him from the start. Those who track these things noted that Wissa’s improved productivity bore a direct correlation from when he assumed frontline striker duties after Ivan Toney’s departure.
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As a super sub backing up the England man his physical output – think sprints, pressure on the ball and runs into the box – were a shadow of what they’ve been over the last 12 months.
Newcastle are likely to heed that counsel. They spent over £100m on two strikers in the final week of the transfer window but Nick Woltemade will need time to adapt.
Wissa will likely emerge as the “go to” guy for the next few months and buys Newcastle the same sort of space that they had with Isak, who was integrated gradually when he signed in 2022.
Wissa’s delight in joining Newcastle is clear. Over the last 12 months there have been bids from Tottenham Hotspur, Nottingham Forest and Wolves but he played on at Brentford, unmoved by the interest.
Newcastle, and the chance to play Champions League football so late in his career, felt like a very different prospect. Having put himself out on a limb to get it, now it is up to him to grasp an opportunity he feared might have passed him by.