Newcastle star labelled ‘worst-ever Premier League signing’ after Alan Shearer claim | Football

Newcastle striker Nick Woltemade has been labelled the ‘worst-ever Premier League signing’ after his undwhelming start to life in the English top-flight.

Woltemade joined Newcastle for £69 million from Bundesliga side Stuttgart, fresh off an impressive campaign with Germany at the European Under-21 Championship, where he scored six goals in five games.

The 24-year-old was tasked with replacing the attacking output of Alexander Isak, and made an encouraging start at Newcastle with five goals in his first 10 appearances.

However, his form has dipped over recent months, with Woltemade scoring just once in 17 games in 2026 and even finding himself deployed further back in central midfield in recent weeks.

And Eddie Howe’s unwillingness to have Woltemade leading the line has led talkSPORT presenter Adrian Durham to suggest the German is a contender for the worst ‘pound-for-pound’ signing in the league’s history.

‘Nick Woltemade, I am going to say this – is the worst signing in Premier League history. This isn’t anything against him, it isn’t personal – I hear he’s a very good teammate,’ he said.

‘But £65-70million for one of those, and we’ve got to delve deeper. I was in Newcastle the other night for the Qarabag game, the tie was done, so it was a chance for players to shine, and it was a night Newcastle had a free hit. Their expensive striker needs goals, and he starts in central midfield.

‘Now, this is possibly because he doesn’t trust him up front. He didn’t play well in central midfield. Eddie Howe said he didn’t play well in central midfield, saying it is the least he’s affected the game since he arrived at the club.

‘Is he a nine? No. One goal in 18 games is not a nine. Is he a midfielder? No, definitely not. Is he a ten? Have a look at the number tens around the Premier League. Morgan Rogers, Cole Palmer, Bruno Fernandes. Morgan Gibbs-White, etc.

‘There are better number tens in the Championship than Woltemade. Two Premier League assists all season, and when did Newcastle play with a ten? They aren’t going to rip up that three-man midfield to put Woltemade at ten.

‘Let’s get this right. He is a footballer, he’s got talent. But he has not got a place in the Newcastle United team, and I think that is the fundamental flaw here.

‘It’s not about him as a person, it’s not about him as a player even. But it’s the way Newcastle play, the fact they needed to replace Isak, Howe is putting him all over the park trying to find a place for him.

‘£70m and he hasn’t even got a place in the team? That’s your big signing. That’s a joke signing. So pound-for-pound, for what a team needed and what he brings, I make Woltemade the worst-ever Premier League signing.’