The German national team boss has outlined what he wants for Nick Woltemade at Newcastle United
Nick Woltemade of Germany looks on
Newcastle United striker Nick Woltemade on international duty with Germany
(Image: Sebastian Frej/Getty Images)
German national team manager Julian Nagelsmann has warned Newcastle United he hopes to see Nick Woltemade 'play regularly' following his transfer late last month.
Newcastle searched far and wide for a significant striker signing and managed to land Woltemade from VfB Stuttgart before the deadline. A deal worth £69m in total was agreed and the 23-year-old moved to the North East in good time before the transfer window closed.
However, he only arrived after the start of the Premier League's third round of fixtures and hasn't yet had the chance to play under Eddie Howe before flying back to his homeland for the September international break.
Woltemade has been promoted to Nagelsmann's senior squad after scoring 17 goals in all competitions for his former club last season. The striker started in what turned out to be a disastrous beginning to Germany's FIFA World Cup qualifying campaign on Thursday.
The four-time world champions were beaten 2-0 by Slovakia - their first-ever defeat on foreign soil in qualifying for the major tournament.
The result has left Nagelsmann with plenty to ponder, including any questions asked in his press conference held ahead of Germany's next fixture against Northern Ireland on Sunday, September 7. One question put forward was whether he personally was pleased to see players such as Woltemade or Florian Wirtz, who joined Liverpool in June, leaving the Bundesliga.
"I'm happy when they play a lot of games and get a lot of minutes, that's the most important thing for me," he replied, though admitted: "It's not ideal for the German Bundesliga that the best German players are moving to England.
"But that's how it is. It's kind of normal at this period of time."
Nagelsmann continued to indirectly tell Newcastle that he wishes to see Woltemade become a prominent part of Howe's plans for the future, as it would be for the benefit of the German national team.
He said: "Flo is already one of the most important players for us. Nick is too and will be in the future. I hope Nick will play regularly at Newcastle so he can develop in the right way. If they do, then they will play a big role for us."
Newcastle have been without a central striker before the international break as Alexander Isak looked to force his way to a transfer. This eventually happened on deadline day, with the 25-year-old joining Liverpool for £125m.
Toon chiefs were also able to secure the signing of Yoane Wissa from Brentford before the deadline too, meaning Howe has two new forwards to pick from moving on.
It will have to be up to the Newcastle manager's discretion who he picks between Woltemade and Wissa, or indeed if both can play together.