Nick Woltemade

[Craig]

Doesn't help his overall game that refs have decided he's impossible to foul giving defenders the license to manhandle him.

[joeyt]

He doesn't get off the ground though

 

Unless the ball is hit straight at his feet his hold up play is non existent

[samptime29]

I'm not too worried. 9 goals so far and several assists. Clearly room for improvement but this season will do him the world of good long term. Interesting to see him in the hole behind Wissa.

 

 

Edited January 8 by samptime29

[Kilcline]

1 minute ago, Craig said:

Doesn't help his overall game that refs have decided he's impossible to foul giving defenders the license to manhandle him.

This irritates me no end, no idea about other teams with big lads but Woltemade and Burn are just seen as fair game. The ref in the Benfica game even signalled he wasn't giving a foul because Woltemade was about six inches taller than the defender all over his back 

[Thumbheed]

46 minutes ago, joeyt said:

 

Disagree, I think the fact he can't stretch the play by providing any threat of him running behind defenders means we're relying too much on being far too intricate with our midfielders and wingers which we know we don't have. With Wissa at least he provides a threat running behind

 

Doesn;t help that Big Nick is 6ft 6in but jumps 5ft 11

 

Think his positioning is very static and central too meaning passing outlets to him are blocked more often than not. 

 

Sometimes with Woltemade, its the runs he doesnt make that you dont notice until your watching him that make a massive difference. Theres been a few examples where a players recived the ball with space behind the full back and where with others strikers theyd see the run in the channel, Woltemade is often static and taking a central postion so the player has to recycle possession elsewhere. It's those little things which stop us turning defense into attack as dynamically as we did in the past. It makes a massive difference to our overall game.

[KaKa]

3 minutes ago, AyeDubbleYoo said:

 

I would include Murphy and Gordon in that they sometimes lose the ball very easily. 

 

Yeah, but wingers are going to lose the ball. Our wingers need more touches further up the pitch to get into a rhythm and build some momentum. We are incapable of setting them up to do this.

 

Doku for example loses the ball a good amount, but he keeps getting it in forward areas to go at his full back, and it inevitably pays off this season. 

 

Our wingers most often get the ball in awkward areas deep in our half with no midfield support showing for the ball for them to combine with enough, and it's all just a mess.

[trx345]

Harry Kane traded marked jumping under and breaking backs

 

Crouch, Carew, Ferguson, Shearer, Quinn, Ruud used to jump for headers and be a worry for the center backs... 

 

I love him. He's a brilliant player. I just don't think he's the 70M striker we need.

 

 

Edited January 8 by trx345

[ponsaelius]

4 minutes ago, Thumbheed said:

 

Think his positioning is very static and central too meaning passing outlets to him are blocked more often than not. 

 

Sometimes with Woltemade, its the runs he doesnt make that you dont notice until your watching him that make a massive difference. Theres been a few examples where a players recived the ball with space behind the full back and where with others strikers theyd see the run in the channel, Woltemade is often static and taking a central postion so the player has to recycle possession elsewhere. It's those little things which stop us turning defense into attack as dynamically as we did in the past. It makes a massive difference to our overall game.

 

Yeah that is spot on. He's just far too static (right now). It's compounded by the fact that we don't have many technical players who would naturally want to play intricate little passes into him in the centre. Our wingers want pace in behind, and direct running of the channels. Our midfield relies on the physical chaos of the transitions.

 

He's such a bad fit for the team as it's currently set up, that it feels more and more like a panic buy we were pushed into as we had to sign somebody and it had to be a statement replacement.

 

I hope both he and we can adapt as he's seemingly a lovely lad.

[trx345]

 

Murphy isn't incompetence. 

 

What we loved and enjoyed last year - all those crosses Isak tapped ins

 

I've watched his brother at Pompey, Josh - he's been taught same, by Matt Ritchie. Cross the ball. 

[Miercoles]

You guys are fucking crazy man. This dude is mint. Young player, first year in the league, had to jump straight in and started scoring day one.

 

 

[Lotus]

Tbh, apart from the assist I don’t think he affected the game much in general play. Was the first time though that he has been subbed for Wissa and we looked worse. 
 

[joeyt]

44 minutes ago, Lotus said:

Tbh, apart from the assist I don’t think he affected the game much in general play. Was the first time though that he has been subbed for Wissa and we looked worse. 
 

 

Did we? We won 2-1 with Wissa on the pitch

[Infinitely Content]

I want to see him start moving the ball quicker and more decisively. It's not entirely on him as such play requires rehearsed patterns and being able to predict the movement of teammates, but it's certainly true that he's really struggling at the moment. He's either not yet up to speed with the demands of the league or simply not yet strong enough to hold the ball up, he usually takes 2-3 touches he doesn't have the time for before falling over.

He's got some real quality and talent, but it's a tough watch at the moment with him up top.

[Mountain]

Best assist I've seen in many years.

 

The delicacy of that touch was pure art.

 

Many won't understand, some will.

[Sibierski]

I’m not worried about Wolte at all, I’m more worried about rest of the team. 

[alexf]

Crikey that own goal against the Mackems must have really pissed a few of you off. No need to write the lad off after a few games. 

 

Was only a few weeks ago he was scoring two again Chelsea when we were whipping good service into him.

 

Yes he's a work in progress but I feel everyone knew that when we signed him. We took a gamble when we were desperate and so far we have lucked out. He's done well in a team not set up to suit his style and without a more experienced striker in Wissa to share the load. 

 

There's been a few example of when we do play through him and get runners off him it looked really good. Union away in the CL springs to mind? 

 

Hope the club aren't as reactive as some on here and give the lad time.

[Tiresias]

He's still going plenty of development to go in his first season and his goal tally is fine for a striker in first team in a team that has often been poor 

[ryanegg]

We’re not playing to his strengths and he has 1 less goal that Ekitike. 
 

The lad is doing more than fine. I’m really looking forward to when we have him drilled properly to the system, or Howe does the unthinkable and changes our tactics to suit him. 

[Weezertron]

I think it’ll be him that will have to adapt (whether he has the physical attributes to do so is a good question). Can’t imagine Howe changing our style of play for the sake of one player, when he is so married to it (and he’s allowed to be, all coaches have their ideology)
 

I love big Nick, so I hope it works out somehow. 

[Fak]

19 minutes ago, Weezertron said:

I think it’ll be him that will have to adapt (whether he has the physical attributes to do so is a good question). Can’t imagine Howe changing our style of play for the sake of one player, when he is so married to it (and he’s allowed to be, all coaches have their ideology)
 

I love big Nick, so I hope it works out somehow. 

 

Doesn't make sense to chuck a £75m on a player and not play to his strengths to get the best out of him. Imagine both Howe and Wolt will have to meet each other half way on this. 

[Weezertron]

3 minutes ago, Fak said:

 

Doesn't make sense to chuck a £75m on a player and not play to his strengths to get the best out of him. Imagine both Howe and Wolt will have to meet each other half way on this. 

 

I agree. It doesn't make sense. 

 

Lets hope so! 

[Stottie]

I think he's come in and done great.

 

He also gets heavily fouled. Maybe needs to learn how to make more of this. Most players would go down clutching the face after the Gabriel elbow. 

 

Regarding interplay with others, we've not had a settled team and have seen others struggle, so its harsh to judge him on not being the glue that bonds it all together. Its all been a bit dysfunctional. For Howe, he will need to press more, but will take time to learn.

[Miercoles]

6 hours ago, Tiresias said:

He's still going plenty of development to go in his first season and his goal tally is fine for a striker in first team in a team that has often been poor 

 

I mean 7 in 18 PL games is pretty good regardless. Last I heard 1-in-2 was fucking excellent.

 

I feel like people are forgetting that it's really hard to score goals, plenty of games have none at all, and strikers will always drive you crazy with the things they don't do and the goals they don't score.

 

"He didn't do anything except get an assist in a game we won by 1 goal" - well, like, yeah man, exactly.

[gazza ladra]

15 minutes ago, Miercoles said:

 

"He didn't do anything except get an assist in a game we won by 1 goal" - well, like, yeah man, exactly.

Had a shot that required a decent save from their keeper as well.

[LFEE]

22 hours ago, Sibierski said:

I’m not worried about Wolte at all, I’m more worried about rest of the team. 

Which goes back to what I said that started this debate. The TEAM has been better for Nick than Nick has for the TEAM overall. It’s noticeable he suites the UCL much better for what it’s worth.