Newcastle United star Nick Woltemade has addressed the “Woltemessi” nickname given to him by supporters in Germany.
Woltemade has already made an impact for Newcastle United, scoring the winner on his Premier League debut.
The German international looks like a cult-hero on Tyneside. A charismatic figure, it will be fascinating to see how his career at St James’ Park unfolds.
Indeed, the 23-year-old has made huge progress in a relatively short space of time. After making only 70 Bundesliga appearances, he became Newcastle United’s club-record signing.
Clearly, he remains in development. However, such is his ability on the ball, Woltemade has been compared to Lionel Messi and Jamal Musiala.
The “Woltemessi” nickname is obviously a joke but does indicate what an unusual player he is. Despite standing at 6ft 6in, he boasts a perhaps surprising amount of technical quality.
Now, he’s broken his silence on the nickname.
Nick Woltemade reacts to “Woltemessi” nickname
The former Stuttgart striker was speaking to Sky Sports.
He was asked a series of questions sent in from supporters, one of which was how he got the nickname.
Woltemade revealed Stuttgart fans had given him that moniker after he scored a good goal against Wolfsburg.
“I don’t know, the fans did it,” he said.
“I scored a really nice goal against Wolfsburg, such a crazy name.
“I don’t know, I didn’t give myself this name, so if the fans are doing that then it’s okay for me.
“I see it the [social media] comments all the time.”
Nick Woltemade backed to score more than Benjamin Sesko now
Newcastle turned to Woltemade after Benjamin Sesko had rejected them in favour of a move to Manchester United.
That, however, may prove to be a blessing in disguise.
Indeed, while these are early days yet, Sesko is struggling for Manchester United. Obviously, the wider failings of Ruben Amorim’s team probably play a huge part in that.
Still, pundit Paul Merson has backed Woltemade to score more than Sesko in the Premier League this season.
“Based on what we’ve seen so far, you’d be shocked if Woltemade doesn’t score more goals than Sesko this season,” he said.
“He has two wingers who will feed him so well, like they did in that win over Wolves. United, on the other hand, don’t have that type of wingers. Matheus Cunha and Bryan Mbeumo would rather have a crack at goal themselves than feed Sesko.”
Heading into the fifth round of Premier League fixtures, Woltemade has scored one goal in as many appearances while Sesko has none in four outings.
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