After a long and bitter breakup over the summer, Toon fans have their rebound guy
There are different ways to start on the front foot at a new club but none better than scoring on your debut, in front of the home fans; and as Nick Woltemade raced towards the corner flag at St James’ Park, Wolves’ Sam Johnstone still on the floor, the defenders standing around with drooped shoulders, the Newcastle crowd were absolutely exultant.
It was more than just a debut goal, and it meant more to St James’ Park than just the opener in a sharp, frantic game. It was relief, restitution, and a final explosive f-you to Liverpool to fold away the pains of the summer transfer window.
The goal, when it came, was from the right. Both sides had been relentless in attacking each other since quite literally the first blow of the whistle but there had been no breakthrough. There was nothing to suggest this phase of play was any different. No danger in the box: Wolves had nine men behind the ball.
Sandro Tonali was eager to create, but with no avenue he played a perfunctory pass to Jacob Murphy, who checked and observed; one, two, three touches and then a cross into the box where Woltemade was half-crouching like a Bengal tiger.
Off he went following the trajectory of the ball and then jumped, his majestic 6ft 6in frame unmatched by the hapless Emmanuel Agbadou as he got his head to it and then delightfully glanced it goalwards.
Into the net the ball flew, past the flailing Johnstone, and then Woltemade wheeled off in celebration, pointing to the home faithful. They roared back. Alexander Isak was gone and here was his replacement.
Eddie Howe had warned against comparisons, saying no one was like Isak and Woltemade had his own unique attributes, no doubt trying to take some of the pressure and expectation off his new striker. But that train had left the station. Woltemade’s 29th minute goal, the statisticians say, came nine minutes earlier than Isak’s own debut goal for the Magpies in 2022. There will be more comparisons to come.
In the last three games Newcastle have played without a target man, winless in all three, after their faithful soldier for three years defected to Anfield, the £125m they received for him no consolation for being left in the lurch. With makeshift striker Anthony Gordon also suspended for this game Howe was in desperate need of a front man.
Then up came the tall blond German from Stuttgart. From the early minutes he showed some good footwork and generally acted as a focal point for his team, but his fifth minute lay-off for Murphy was curled wide by the Englishman, and a volley met the face of Wolves’ Yerson Mosquera. Woltemade had to wait until nearly half an hour before he announced himself, doing just what Newcastle needed.
A host of similar balls delivered into the box against Aston Villa, Liverpool and Leeds United had seen no one to properly attack them, so it was highly significant that the German opened his account for the club by finishing off one. The match ultimately ended one-nil, the new forward the match winner.
It was through such performances that Isak had delivered the goods for Newcastle time and time again over the past three years, raising him to cult status at the club before the eventual crash in a long and bitter summer. But as Newcastle fans went home on Saturday evening only one name would have been on their minds.
