We asked for your views on how you think Nick Woltemade should be used by Eddie Howe.
Here are some of your comments:
Phil: I think he should be up front. He was doing really well to begin with. Seems it goes back to the unfortunate own goal against Sunderland that was the catalyst for changing his position, but he isn’t the first or last striker to get an own goal. I want him up front and scoring goals.
Richard: This isn’t rocket science. I’m old enough to remember “Beardo in the hole” and how he made Andy Cole a goalscoring record-breaker. If you want to get the best out of Big Nic you’ll need to play a striker ahead of him and cover in midfield behind him. He’s a very talented player but utilising a 10 like him means either a 4-4-1-1 or a 4-2-3-1. If done right and thoroughly practised (Eddie Howe trademark) then a 10 like Nic could be lethal and a fantastic alternative system to the standard 4-3-3.
Richie: I agree with Charlotte [Newcastle fan writer], Woltemade has shown he’s an excellent footballer. The counter-argument though, is that we don’t see training, we don’t know how the players perform outside of matchdays. Eddie and his team do and it’s pretty evident from recent team selection that they don’t feel either Woltemade or Wissa are what we need up front. That’s a damning indictment on the recruitment. Unfortunately, we folded under pressure from a certain Swedish fella and then bought in haste. We should have made said Swede sit on the bench, played Osula until he stopped sulking, and made plans calmly to replace in January. Hindsight is a wonderful thing! Hope we do a better job with the big overhaul this summer.
Phil: The main problem for Woltemade and Howe is they don’t have wingers who can effectively play the way his formation is set out. If we want to get the most out of Big Nic in the current 4-3-3 set-up, we need to have the wingers who are chipping in behind the defence and with goals – this is only if he doesn’t change his tactics. I think what will end up happening is Woltemade will be on fire at the World Cup for Germany as he is rested and they are playing to his strengths. I think this signing will be Howe’s biggest undoing.
Gordon: Stick him up front in the reserves with a for sale sign on his back and cut our losses, if anyone will buy him of course!
