Juventus ended up signing Newcastle United‘s Nick Woltemade in the summer window, after giving up on Manchester United‘s Joshua Zirkzee.
Last summer, the Germany international joined Newcastle United from VfB Stuttgart. He had a good start to his Magpies career, but his form dropped drastically this year.
Meanwhile, Zirkzee settled for a backup role at Manchester United. To put it in context, he played 645 minutes from 26 matches, managing two goals and an assist last season.
The 24-year-old and the Netherlands international both ended up on the Serie A side’s list during the last window. Their priority was to bring the former Bologna man back to Italy while Woltemade was plan B.
Manchester United’s stance favoured Newcastle man
Juventus pursued Joshua Zirkzee for several weeks and Michael Carrick’s side were open to letting him leave.
Fast forward to October and Friday’s print edition of Gazzetta dello Sport points it out and covers the latest. The Old Lady made a strong push to sign the 25-year-old on loan with a purchase option.
This didn’t please the Red Devils, who wanted a mandatory clause. Manchester United’s tough stance forced Juventus to end their interest in Zirkzee and focus on the Newcastle United owned player.
On deadline day, Nick Woltemade completed a loan move to the Turin club. Last month, Sport Witness covered a report from Germany that he pushed for an exit after realising Matthias Jaissle’s style won’t suit him.
Manchester United’s refusal to budge ended up favouring the German to secure a move away from the Tyneside club.
Gazzetta states: ‘At the end of the transfer window, Juventus found themselves assessing their options whilst taking into account the restrictions imposed by the financial fair play rules agreed with UEFA. This constraint significantly limited their choices, which is why Woltemade remained on their list: he was looking for an environment that would allow him to play regularly and showcase his qualities once again.’
This, coupled with Manchester United’s stance, ended up suiting both the Italian club and the Magpies frontman.
| Club | Years | Appearances | Minutes played | Goals | Assists |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Werder Bremen | 2020–2024 | 51 | 1,473 | 2 | 0 |
| SV Elversberg (loan) | 2022–2023 | 32 | 2,228 | 10 | 3 |
| VfB Stuttgart | 2024–2025 | 36 | 2,268 | 18 | 3 |
| Newcastle United | 2025–present | 53 | 3,136 | 11 | 5 |
| Juventus (loan) | 2026–present | 4 | 131 | 1 | 0 |
| Total | Senior first-team career | 176 | 9,236 | 42 | 11 |
| Includes league matches, national cups, the German Supercup and European competitions. Excludes regional cups, reserve-team matches, youth matches and friendlies. Loan appearances are listed separately. Figures checked on 9 October 2026. |
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Manager not happy
This didn’t please Juve manager Luciano Spalletti, who was well aware Nick Woltemade ‘didn’t meet his expectations’.
However, the coach was ‘equally convinced that his ability to be a strong attacking force would allow him to maintain the quality of the team, especially without missing Yildiz, who was sidelined for the first few months of the season due to injury’.
The Newcastle United man has a goal from four matches for Juventus. Meanwhile, Joshua Zirkzee has played 70 minutes from four matches for Manchester United this season.
On October 1st, the possibility of Spalletti’s side returning for the Dutchman was floated in the Italian media.
