Newcastle’s club record signing Nick Woltemade is set to make his debut against a Wolves side still awaiting their first point. BBC Sport takes a look at some of the key themes before Saturday’s match.
Newcastle spent approximately £240m this summer, the fourth highest total in the top flight. Their net spend was a more modest £90m, thanks largely to the acrimonious departure of Alexander Isak for a British record £125m, but there are still plenty of reasons for optimism on Tyneside.
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Club record signing Nick Woltemade could make his bow at the weekend, as might fellow new arrival Yoane Wissa, while Barcelona will visit St James’ Park on Thursday in an eagerly anticipated Champions League game.
Woltemade has started four times already for club and country this season but Magpies boss Eddie Howe may be tempted to ease the 22-year-old into action as he adjusts to a new league and the pressure from his £65m price tag.
It is only 14 months since the striker joined Stuttgart from Werder Bremen on a free but he has enjoyed a rapid rise since, netting 17 league and cup goals during a breakout season, winning the German Cup and finishing as top scorer at this summer’s European Under-21 Championship.
The 6ft 6in player is an aerial threat but by no means fits the profile of a classic target man. Instead he is a technically strong footballer who looks to link play and run with the ball, finishing sixth among Bundesliga strikers for dribbles attempted last season.
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Last term, he also ranked fourth in the top European leagues for most touches in the opposition box per 90 minutes, and the company he keeps in that metric is telling. The other leading players are either wingers or attacking midfielders – like Jamal Musiala and Bukayo Saka – or forwards, such as Mohamed Salah and Kylian Mbappe, who look to get on the ball and make things happen rather than simply lurking as penalty-box predators.
[BBC]
Why Newcastle wanted Strand Larsen
Wolves are the Premier League’s only pointless side, and will also be without key centre-forward Jorgen Strand Larsen, who sat out their defeat by Everton with an Achilles issue amid interest from Newcastle.
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Wolves boss Vitor Pereira said on Friday that Strand Larsen’s “[recent] injury was a bit more serious” and he is “not in a condition for the game”.
The Molineux club rejected £50m and £55m bids from the Magpies and will now offer the Norwegian an improved contract to reflect his importance to the club, following 14 Premier League goals in his debut campaign.
His contribution was at times overshadowed by eye-catching displays from the now-departed Matheus Cunha, who netted 15 times, including five strikes from outside the penalty area. But when Cunha missed four games through suspension in March and April it was Strand Larsen who stepped up, scoring in crucial wins over Southampton, West Ham and Ipswich to effectively guarantee safety for Wolves.
Where Strand Larsen has excelled is by making the most of his chances. His shot conversion figure last term – the percentage of efforts resulting in a goal – was 25.9%, which was the second highest recorded by any player with at least 20 attempts. He also directed 69.4% of his shots on target, the leading percentage among forwards who start regularly, and overperformed his expected goals total by 3.74.
Pereira will want him back as soon as possible.
[BBC]
