The German forward arrived at St James' Park for a club-record 69 million GBP, with Wissa joining from Brentford for 55 million only days later.

Their double signing followed Alexander Isak's British-record 130 million move to Liverpool, a departure that left Newcastle needing immediate attacking reinforcements.

Wissa, already well established at Premier League level, had originally been earmarked to shoulder much of the goalscoring load while Woltemade adapted to the pace and physicality of English football. However, that plan was quickly derailed.

Just over a week after completing his move, Wissa suffered a knee injury while on international duty with DR Congo, disrupting Newcastle's forward options at a crucial stage of the season.

Now, eleven weeks on, Wissa remains unavailable. Although his exact return date is still not confirmed, the club believe he is nearing full fitness.

Woltemade views the impending competition for places positively, insisting that Wissa's comeback will add depth and variety to Eddie Howe's attacking choices.

The former Werder Bremen striker emphasised that rotation will be essential as Newcastle navigate a congested period of league and cup fixtures.

He also expressed confidence that he and Wissa could form a potent partnership once both are fully integrated into the squad.

"To be honest, I was expecting it! No, not that I play every game, but maybe also sometimes with Wissa or Osula, sometimes I thought we could change because I play now a lot of games," Woltemade told ESPN.

"And this is also the first time for me that I play in this rhythm, like every three days now I play every game. And of course, I wanted to play when I come there, so I'm really happy that I play every game and I still want to play every game.

"But I'm also really happy that Wissa is coming back and I think we can also play really good together maybe. And I think then, like the situation for sometimes you don't feel so good in the game, then maybe some other striker can come in and help each other together.

"So we get more power and I think I'm really excited for the guys to come back."

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