New Juventus coach issues immediate challenge to loanee Woltemade

Next Exit Turin: Nick Woltemade | Source: picture alliance/SvenSimon/Frank Hoermann/SVEN SIMON

Nick Woltemade is seeking his fortune in Italy. The German national striker aims to rediscover his best form at Juventus Turin, but the club's new coach has delivered a clear message from the outset.

A Fresh Start in Turin

Woltemade proudly presented his new club's jersey, which bears the same black-and-white stripes as Newcastle United — a fitting parallel to the German international's recent fortunes.

Almost exactly one year ago, Woltemade moved from VfB Stuttgart to England with great fanfare. The transfer fee was reportedly up to €90 million. Celebrated as "Big Nick," he initially found success, slamming penalties into the corner and earning a cult following. However, at the World Cup, his penalty attempt was saved, prompting social media mockery and the label of "benchwarmer."

Now comes the fresh start in Italy.

At the very least, the "next chapter" begins, as Woltemade wrote on social media alongside his photo holding the Juventus jersey. The 24-year-old said in an introductory video on the club's website that he cannot wait to get started. He expressed happiness to be in Turin and pledged to help the team win with goals, assists, and final passes for his teammates.

Hamann: "I Don't Really Like the Transfer"

This next chapter represents a step down from his previous role at Newcastle. In summer 2025, Woltemade was still looking forward to Champions League and Premier League football — "the best league in the world." Now, everything is different. Juventus is no longer the top choice even in Italy, where Inter and Napoli have recently dominated.

The club is not playing in the Champions League, and the Italian Serie A lags far behind the English Premier League both sportingly and financially. But Woltemade likely does not mind for now. Above all, he hopes for more goals, more game time, and renewed self-confidence — so that penalties fly into the corner again and new national coach Jürgen Klopp brings him back into the starting lineup.

Until next summer, Woltemade is on loan to Turin for a reported fee of €4–5 million — a move that has drawn criticism in his home country.

"I would have stayed in Newcastle. I would have preferred to see him move to BVB. I don't really like the transfer," said former national player Dietmar Hamann in his role as a Sky expert.

In the end, interest from Dortmund remained speculation.

Sky expert: Dietmar Hamann | Source: Sven Hoppe/dpa

A Difficult Season at Newcastle

At Newcastle, which did not qualify for any international competition, Woltemade would likely have faced a tough time even under new German coach Matthias Jaissle. In the first two league matchdays, he played only 19 minutes. His overall record of 53 competitive matches — most of them as a substitute — and 11 goals is meager by his standards. The 1.98-meter-tall striker's contract with the Magpies runs until 2031.

Rummenigge's Words Echo

Bayern supervisory board member Karl-Heinz Rummenigge may feel vindicated in hindsight:

"I can only congratulate those in Stuttgart for finding an — I'll say in quotation marks — idiot who paid so much money — because we in Munich certainly wouldn't have done that," said the former Bayern boss last summer.

During the transfer negotiations, Munich was long considered the favorite, including by Woltemade himself. VfB Stuttgart blocked the move, demanded a higher transfer fee, and declared the striker unsellable — before Newcastle added more money to the table than Bayern was willing to offer.