Newcastle dressing room response to Bayern Munich’s ‘mad’ Nick Woltemade comments

Nick Woltemade has been in top form for Newcastle following his £65m move from VfB Stuttgart in the summer, while Bayern Munich executive Karl-Heinz Rummenigge has spoken out on the player

Nick Pope has fired back at remarks from Bayern Munich concerning Newcastle United striker Nick Woltemade. The Magpies goalkeeper branded observations made by the Bundesliga giants’ chief Karl-Heinz Rummenigge as “madness”, after Newcastle had been labelled “idiots” for splashing so much cash on the hitman.

The towering German attacker has enjoyed a sensational start to his career in English football after his club-record switch from VfB Stuttgart. Woltemade bolstered his goal return on Wednesday evening as Eddie Howe’s men secured their spot in the Carabao Cup quarter-finals with a 2-0 triumph over Tottenham Hotspur.

The 23-year-old has netted four times in six Premier League outings alongside strikes in both the Champions League and League Cup. Woltemade has swiftly cemented his position as a crucial member of the team with no indication of any real adverse effects for Newcastle from Alexander Isak’s high-profile exit.

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The Germany international has emerged as one of the most impressive additions to England’s elite division whilst the likes of Isak and several Liverpool summer signings have endured difficulties since their respective transfers.

Pope has revealed the changing room’s response to Woltemade’s influence, but also targeted Rummenigge over his inflammatory comments regarding the striker.

“[On Newcastle having lots of tall players] It’s only a positive thing, now that set pieces are a big part of the game, and physicality is a big part,” he said speaking to Fozcast.

“It’s a bonus to have those bodies on the pitch. I’m kind of used to it – at Burnley, we had some massive lads as well, so I’ve gotten used to having big lads around me.

“It’s great to have Nick Woltemade, obviously he’s hit the ground running for us. Everyone wants to give him the ball, and he’s shown in training and in games what a player he is – it’s a joy to have him.

“It’s madness,” the English shot-stopper said, reacting to the comments made by the Bayern chief.

“Obviously, the standard line is I don’t talk about players from another team. Do we not do that anymore? Now he’s banging goals every few days, it looks great for Nick. He’ll take anything like that in his stride. He’s very mellow and settled into the group great.”

Woltemade was pursued by Bayern over the summer as they sought to bolster their attacking options, having missed out on key targets.

Rummenigge slammed Newcastle for paying £65million for the forward, he said: “I’ll be honest: When this story with Woltemade and then the demand from Stuttgart came up, I, as well as Uli, Herbert Hainer, Jan Dreesen, and Max Eberl, said – folks, we’re slowly getting to a level that I simply don’t find acceptable anymore.

“We shouldn’t fulfil every demand to make someone happy, especially the financiers at VfB Stuttgart.

“I can only congratulate those in Stuttgart for finding – I’ll use quotation marks here – an idiot who paid that much money. Because we certainly wouldn’t have done that in Munich.”

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