Newcastle United have signed Germany striker Nick Woltemade from VfB Stuttgart in a club-record deal that sources have told ESPN is worth £64.9 million ($87.5m).
The 23-year-old was at the club’s training ground on Friday to finalise a move to the Premier League club and was subsequently confirmed as a Newcastle player on Saturday.
“I’m really happy to be at this amazing club,” Woltemade said in a statement. “From the first contact, I felt like the club really wanted me and had big plans for me.
“It’s a big step in my life to leave Germany but everybody has welcomed me so well and it already feels like family. I have a really good feeling from speaking to the head coach that this is the right place for me to find my best level.
“I know the stadium from watching games on television — it looks amazing and I know the atmosphere is crazy. I’m really excited to play and start scoring goals here.”
He had initially been a target for Bayern Munich but Newcastle jumped ahead of the Bundesliga champions after having a bid accepted by Stuttgart.
Woltemade began his career with Werder Bremen, spending 10 years in their youth set up, before joining the senior team in 2020.
There, he scored two goals in 51 appearances in all competitions.
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The 6-foot-6 striker made the switch from Werder Bremen to Stuttgart at the start of the 2024-25 season and was a vital cog in the side that won the DFB Pokal, scoring 17 goals in 33 games.
He has made two appearances for Germany and starred during the recent U21 Euros, scoring a hat-trick against Slovenia in the group stages.
A major stumbling block for Liverpool signing Alexander Isak from Newcastle has been their lack of success in signing a replacement, with Woltemade’s transfer potentially creating a transfer domino effect.
Sources have told ESPN though that Liverpool have yet to return with a bid higher than their initial £110m offer.
Newcastle have struggled to sign a recognised centre-forward throughout the summer and with Isak training alone, Eddie Howe resorted to playing Anthony Gordon as a makeshift No. 9 for their opening two Premier League matches against Aston Villa and Liverpool.
They made efforts to sign Liam Delap, João Pedro, Benjamin Sesko and Hugo Ekitike, but all four chose to join Premier League rivals.
“We’re delighted to get Nick’s signing over the line so quickly,” Howe said. “He fits the profile for exactly what we have been looking to add to our attacking options.
“He’s strong in a lot of areas — he has great technical ability and has proven himself to be a real threat in one of Europe’s top leagues — but he’s also still at an age where he has plenty of room to develop and grow here.”
Woltemade becomes Newcastle’s fifth acquisition of the summer, after Anthony Elanga, Jacob Ramsey, Malick Thiaw and Aaron Ramsdale made the move to St. James’ Park.
Information from ESPN’s Mark Ogden contributed to this report.