Joelinton knows exactly what it takes to settle into life as a Newcastle United player.
While the 29-year-old is a key player for Eddie Howe now, that was not the case when he first arrived at St James’ Park.
He was a club-record signing who was given the number nine shirt, but did not look comfortable leading the line. It was a rough start to life on Tyneside, but Joelinton was transformed by Eddie Howe.
In 2025, Joelinton is a senior member of the Newcastle United squad, and is doing his best to help new players settle in. That includes Nick Woltemade, who has been the talk of the Toon ever since becoming Newcastle’s most expensive signing.
Joelinton has very high hopes for Nick Woltemade at Newcastle United
Ever since his £69million move to Newcastle, Woltemade has been on the end of constant digs from Bayern Munich. The latest came from Bayern board member Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, who described whoever agreed to the deal at Newcastle United as an ‘idiot’ for spending so much money on him.
This comes after Bayern missed out on Woltemade, having been desperate to sign the 23-year-old striker.
Joelinton has now jumped to the defence of his new teammate, after being asked about Rummenigge’s remarks ahead of Union Saint-Gilloise vs Newcastle United.
“I didn’t see so I don’t know what they said, but everyone has an opinion,” he said.
“We are very happy to have Nick here. He is a great player, a great talent. I hope he can continue scoring and do well for us.”
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The difference between Joelinton and Nick Woltemade at Newcastle United
When Joelinton joined Newcastle in 2019, it quickly became clear that he was not a striker. He looked uncomfortable in his new surroundings, crumbling under the pressure of being the club-record signing and wearing the number nine shirt.
Once Joelinton was moved away from centre-forward, his Toon career started to change. Howe has taken his game to unimaginable heights, which is down to his coaching ability and Joelinton’s outstanding attitude.
When it comes to Woltemade, a position change is not expected despite various pundits suggesting he should be an attacking midfielder. Eddie Howe says Woltemade is a number nine, scoffing at the suggestion he could be a number 10 in black and white.
For the 6ft 6in striker, it is about getting the rest of the Newcastle United players on his wavelength. He is a very different player to Alexander Isak, which means the Magpies need to change their style of play.
The Germany international is doing his end of the bargain so far. Despite limited chances, Woltemade has scored two goals and is impressing whenever he gets on the ball. The problem is getting it to him more regularly.
That is an issue for Howe to solve, as he attempts to unleash the ‘great player’ that the Magpies bought from Stuttgart.
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