The Athletic’s Chris Waugh has provided an update on who, out of Yoane Wissa and Nick Woltemade, will start for Newcastle United against Wolves.
The international break is almost over, and fans cannot wait to see their two new strikers take to the field at St James’ Park.
Newcastle United completed late summer signings of Nick Woltemade and Yoane Wissa, with the latter being completed in a nervy 30 seconds before the deadline.
Both players are out on international duty, with Wissa scoring for DR Congo against South Sudan, and towering striker Nick Woltemade providing an assist in Germany’s win against Northern Ireland.
Newcastle take on Wolves at St James’ Park on Saturday, where both players will have their opportunity to make their debuts. However, there has been no official confirmation of who could lead the line against Vitor Pereira’s side.
Now, Chris Waugh has shared what he has been told through conversations with people around the club about who could start the game.
Newcastle United Unveil New Signing Yoane Wissa
Photo by Serena Taylor/Newcastle United via Getty Images
Newcastle United expected to start Yoane Wissa over Nick Woltemade against Wolves
Eddie Howe has a dilemma over who to start against Wolves. Does he opt for Woltemade, who has already played multiple games and had a full pre-season? Or would he prefer someone with less match sharpness, but years of Premier League experience?
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In this case, Howe appears to have gone for the latter. In Waugh’s weekly Q&A with The Athletic, he believes that Wissa will start ahead of Woltemade following conversations he had had with people in and around the club.
However, it is not a certainty, as the 29-year-old will not be back on Tyneside until at least Thursday, and will have two sessions at most before the game.
Neither striker has trained with Howe, so the 47-year-old is in a rather sticky situation ahead of the game. He could even opt to start both players, giving Newcastle’s attack a much better chance of finding the back of the net at the risk of conceding more.
The pair will get their own opportunities to start, while William Osula will likely lead the line during cup games.
Newcastle United lack Champions League experience at striker
The 2025/26 campaign is going to be an incredibly busy one for Newcastle. The Magpies will play at least 48 games this season, but it could be significantly more if they go on a good cup run.
Howe will be hoping that his experienced players are able to play frequently to bring as much success to the club as possible.
The Champions League will be a completely different ball game from the last time they were in it, with eight games played against eight different teams in a league phase rather than the traditional six games against three teams in a group stage.
Thankfully, most of the players Newcastle have in their squad have been exposed to Champions League nights, except for their strikers.
None of Wissa, Woltemade or Osula have played in the Champions League before, so all three of them will be experiencing the top European nights for the very first time.
Woltemade helped Stuttgart qualify for the Champions League last season, but left for Newcastle before being able to play.