Bayern Munich chief slams Newcastle United after £78m Nick Woltemade transfer hijack
Bayern Munich chief has hit out at Newcastle United after striking a club record £65million deal to sign Nick Woltemade from VfB Stuttgart.
Newcastle United completed the signing of Bayern Munich transfer target Nick Woltemade in the final week of the summer transfer window.
Bayern had been linked with a move for the 23-year-old German international throughout the summer after his 17 goal breakthrough season with Stuttgart and Under-21s European Championship golden boot win.
But the Bundesliga champions were ultimately priced out of a move as Newcastle swooped in to agree a club record £65million transfer plus add-ons.
The deal prompted Bayern supervisory board member Uli Hoeness to hit out at The Magpies for their transfer spending. But it’s not the first time Hoeness has hit out at Woltemade’s valuation.
‘Out of his mind’ - Bayern chief hits out over Nick Woltemade fee
Bayern were looking to strike a deal with Stuttgart around the £50million mark for Woltemade over the summer.
Amid the transfer pursuit, German football icon Lothar Matthäus told leading German publication BILD that Bayern’s valuation was too low and €80-100million [£70-85million] is more appropriate for Woltemade.
But Bayern’s outspoken chief hit out at the claim, stating: “Lothar Matthäus is out of his mind! These experts have been a thorn in my side for a long time.”
As it turned out, Matthäus’ claim was vindicated as Newcastle agreed a £65million deal with Stuttgart plus several add-ons which could rise to £78million in total.
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Uli Hoeness accuses Newcastle United of playing transfer ‘Monopoly’
After missing out on Woltemade and indeed Florian Wirtz, who joined Liverpool from Bayer Leverkusen for £116million over the summer, Hoeness hit out at the transfer fees being spent by Premier League clubs.
"We're very satisfied at FC Bayern," Hoeness told German media. "We are the real winners of the summer transfer window. We have a strong team and didn't need to strengthen it much. Of course, we would have liked to have Florian Wirtz, but we'd never have bought him for €150million [£130million].
"We offered €55million (£47.7million) for Nick Woltemade, while Stuttgart wanted €75million [£65million].
"In the end, he went to Newcastle for €90million (£78million). What Newcastle are doing has nothing to do with football. It's like Monopoly these days."
Meanwhile, Bayern agreed a deadline day loan move that saw Nicolas Jackson join from Chelsea for a £14.2million loan fee plus an obligation to buy clause of £56.2million based on performance-related criteria.
Hoeness also addressed Jackson’s move to Bayern, stating a permanent transfer ‘will never happen’ for the forward.
“The loan fee isn't €16.5 million because the player and his agent paid €3 million,” he told German TV channel SPORT1. “There will definitely not be a permanent contract. That only happens if he plays 40 games from the start; it will never happen.”
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Nick Woltemade set to make Newcastle United debut
After earning two caps for Germany as a Newcastle United player during the international break, Woltemade will return to Tyneside to train with his new teammates for the first time ahead of Saturday’s Premier League clash against Wolverhampton Wanderers at St James’ Park (3pm kick-off).