Nick Woltemade transfer still continues to cause controversy in Germany as VfB Stuttgart manager laments club's 'risk'
The transfer of Nick Woltemade to Newcastle United has been a huge topic of conversation in Germany, particularly by Bayern Munich, who were beaten to the signing of the German international by the Magpies.
Quotes from senior officials at Bayern Munich were filled with regret and jealousy over not having the financial muscle to compete with Newcastle in the transfer market.
Now the manager of VfB Stuttgart has broken his silence after seeing his star forward sold for £65 million plus £4 million in add-ons so late in the summer window.
Newcastle certainly aren't unaware of how it feels to see a big, important striker sold so late in the window with no replacement coming in, as the same thing happened with Andy Carroll in 2011.
VfB Stuttgart boss has aimed a dig at his board after they failed to secure a new striker in the wake of Nick Woltemade's departure
Stuttgart boss Sebastian Hoeness saw a deal for a replacement forward fall through before the window closed, leaving him with just one striker, who has picked up an injury, and has now told German outlet Welt that he knew it was a risk selling Woltemade.
"It's not about whether my fears were confirmed. We all knew that we were taking a risk by selling Nick and the Hyeon Gyu Oh transfer not coming to fruition.
"There was great hope that he [backup striker Ermedin Demirovic] would make it through the season, as has been the case in recent years. But injuries are unfortunately a part of competitive sport.
"[Demirovic] is the only true centre-forward in the squad. For us, this means that we as a coaching staff have to work with the players on solutions. We were already doing this before Medo's absence due to the large number of games, but now the task is obviously significantly more challenging."
"I've always said that I could understand the financial implications of selling Nick. But I'm not a bank director, I'm a coach. Of course, the sporting quality of the squad is paramount. It was clear that we would lose a lot of quality by selling Nick, especially since his striker profile is so exceptional. We all recognised the need to sign a replacement for Nick, but unfortunately, the transfer couldn't be realised at this late stage for the reasons already explained."
It's hard to feel too bad when Nick Woltemade has been so good for Newcastle
As much as we can sympathise with the position Hoeness and Stuttgart have been left in, it's hard to feel too bad considering how good Nick Woltemade has been for Newcastle already.
We thought we'd be waiting until mid-season before we saw any true indication of what the 6'6" striker could do, but he has wowed fans with four goals in five games and some absolutely sublime linkup play to keep the Magpies on the attack.
Their loss has definitely been our gain.
