Yoane Wissa was left thankful that his first-half penalty miss didn’t prove costly on Saturday afternoon, as Newcastle United fended off a late Hull City rally to seal a vital three points at St James’ Park.
While fellow 2025 arrival, Nick Woltemade, has been cast off to Juventus, Wissa has been given a second chance on Tyneside, following his own forgettable debut campaign under Eddie Howe.
The former Brentford man scored just a solitary Premier League goal across 2025/26, having missed the opportunity to eclipse that tally just five games into the new season, following the weekend’s failed spot-kick.
There’s no denying that he has looked like a man reborn under Matthias Jaissle, but will Wissa ever be the prolific number nine Newcastle are in need of?
Why Wissa may just be a short-term fix at Newcastle
Having been brought in to be a ready-made, Premier League-proven replacement for Alexander Isak, Wissa effectively endured a wasted first year with the Magpies, never really shaking off his early-season fitness woes.
Now 30, time is of the essence for the £55m man to prove he hasn’t been a wayward signing, the DR Congo star yet to get anywhere close to the levels of goalscoring form he showcased in west London.
In his final year with the Bees, he scored 19 league goals, having netted 12 the year prior, joining the likes of Ivan Toney and Bryan Mbeumo in proving prolific under Thomas Frank’s watch.
Only two league goals have followed in a Newcastle shirt since then, the experienced striker yet to be truly rewarded for his undoubted uplift in form since Jaissle took charge.
He was imperious on the opening weekend against Liverpool, albeit while operating in between the lines rather than at the tip of the attack, having perhaps suffered since amid the absence of Will Osula.
In any case, Wissa’s best work appears to be when dropping deep to link play, as he showed against the Reds, rather than necessarily being the man to supply the finishing touch in the penalty box.
Perhaps he won’t be the true number nine that Newcastle are crying out for, with the club’s long-term solution potentially lying elsewhere.
Why Newcastle already have a future number nine in the making
The shadow of Alan Shearer looms large over St James’ Park, with any player wearing the Englishman’s famed jersey likely to find it tough to live up to expectations.
Newcastle No.9’s Post-Shearer | |
|---|---|
Player | Time with shirt number |
Wissa | 25/26 – present |
Wilson | 21/22 – 24/25 |
Joelinton | 19/20 – 20/21 |
Rondon | 18/19 |
Gayle | 16/17 – 17/18 |
Cisse | 11/12 – 15/16 |
Carroll | 10/11 |
Martins | 06/07 – 08/09 |
For all his quality, all his potential, Wissa just hasn’t delivered as yet in front of goal, with even Woltemade at least showing greater signs of life in that regard last season.
Patience is likely to wear thin if the ex-Brentford man doesn’t find his shooting boots sooner rather than later, with the pressure on the returning Osula to replicate the fine form that he showcased at the back end of last term.
Perhaps the pair will have competition for places before too long, however, with the win over Hull seeing a certain Vakhtang Salia earn his place in the matchday squad.
Still only 19, the young Georgian is yet to make a senior appearance for the Magpies, although Saturday’s inclusion among the substitutes suggests he might be pushing closer to a first outing in black and white.
Signed initially back in October 2024, the former Dinamo Tbilisi sensation didn’t actually arrive on Tyneside until last summer when he turned 18, having scored eight goals in 57 games for his previous employers at senior level.
Hopes were certainly high at the time of the move, with journalist Graeme Bailey relaying the view that Salia was considered “one of the best teenage prospects in the world”.
The likes of Manchester City and Arsenal were said to be leading the race for his signature at one stage, although the Magpies might well have struck gold by swooping in to strike a deal themselves.
Indeed, while his debut season was wrecked by injury, Salia has started brightly in 2026/27, hence his first-team promotion, scoring three times in five games across three different competitions.
He notably netted in the EFL Trophy win over York City last week, pouncing on a defensive mistake before lashing the ball home into the roof of the net from close range.
He’d impressively sensed there might be an error on the cards and ruthlessly made the hosts pay, with it unsurprising that Jaissle has already brought him into the senior set-up.
It’s not as if he hasn’t flourished against first-team opposition in the past, having thrived back in Georgia even at the age of just 16 or 17, boasting the kind of experience that should place him ahead of his academy colleagues.
Hopefully, a Newcastle debut is in the pipeline, with the club’s next number nine in waiting potentially already in the building. Wissa better watch out…
Source: www.footballfancast.com
