Eddie Howe gives honest assessment of tactical experiment to play Nick Woltemade and Yoane Wissa together
Eddie Howe surprised everyone on Saturday when he finally announced a Newcastle United starting lineup which included both Yoane Wissa and Nick Woltemade.
Newcastle fans have been excited to see how the two could link up together ever since it became apparent that Nick Woltemade would be an excellent number 10 behind a faster striker.
Obviously, we've all had to be patient to see this plan in action due to Yoane Wissa's injury, but even when he returned, Howe has had to be careful not to overload either player, as losing one to injury would leave him without options again.
When the team was announced on Saturday, we, like many others, had assumed that Wissa was going to be playing out on the wing as he had done in the past for Brentford, but the striker took up his role as the number 9 with Joe Willock playing as a de facto winger.
Eddie Howe saw some good in playing both strikers together
We'd be lying if we thought that the experiment was a roaring success, but it showed promise at times, which is also what Eddie Howe told reporters after the game (h/t Newcastle World).
“It was okay. I think there were some good bits and there were some bits that maybe weren't so good. I think it's only when I review the game that I can really, truly give my opinion.
“I wanted to do it in a game that I felt tactically would benefit us. I felt that was the game today to try that. I want the option to go to it in-running in a game at some stage.
“I don't necessarily see it being a regular for us, as in a regular starting system. But who knows? If it worked really well, then, of course, the chances of that would go up.
“But I thought both players tried to make it work to the best of their ability. I thought Nick was particularly impressive with what he gave the game physically, having played all of it.”
Newcastle can't play two strikers with our current flimsy squad
It's something that Newcastle can have in their arsenal, but we definitely don't see it being a regular thing, and Howe's words simply confirmed that.
To make it a regularly used tactic, we need more support in the striker department. Having three strikers works when you're only playing one at a time, but if you're deploying two in every game with only one as a backup, that's a dangerous game. And right now, we don't even have one as backup, as Will Osula is injured and has a foot out the door.
Let's save the dual-striker power for special occasions for now.
