In a conversation with Flashscore, former Newcastle striker Aleksandar Mitrovic explains what it’s like playing football in Qatar during times of military conflict and offers his opinions on the Magpies’ strikers, defends the often-criticised signing of Nick Woltemade.
After overcoming early injury struggles, which sidelined him from the October international break all the way until the start of February, Mitrovic hit great form for Al Rayyan.
“Doha is usually a really nice, peaceful place. So this wasn’t nice to hear, neither the explosions nor the news about what’s going on. But you know, I’m from Serbia, I have some experience with this from my childhood. I know the most important thing is to not panic,” Mitrovic tells Flashscore.
“Obviously nobody wants to see any wars and we all hope that the situation will return to normal very soon,” he adds.
Mitrovic spent two-and-a-half seasons at St. James’ Park, scoring 17 times across all competitions before he moved to Fulham, where he netted over 100 goals. He knows what it feels like to be a striker at Newcastle, a club that enjoyed years of greatness from Alan Shearer and has high expectations for forwards.
He understands what Nick Woltemade must be feeling now. The towering German forward, bought from Stuttgart last summer for a reported club record fee of £65 million, had a great start to his Newcastle career, netting on both his Premier League and Champions League debuts. But his form has dipped since winter as his last Premier League goal dates all the way back to December 20th, when he scored a brace in a draw against Chelsea.
Mitrovic thinks the recent criticism of Woltemade hasn’t been quite fair. “I think he’s still having a great season. Of course, as a striker, you want to score a lot. But I don’t think his input is just goals,” Mitrovic told Soccerway partners Flashscore in a video call from the training facilities of his current club, QSL side Al Rayyan.
“He is a very good link-up player. He can drop deep, help with the buildup. Thanks to him, fast players like Anthony Gordon, Harvey Barnes and Anthony Elanga have the space to attack. I think the manager uses him very well,” Mitrovic says, praising Eddie Howe’s recent decision to move Woltemade to an offensive midfielder position.
“To me, Woltemade’s similar to Harry Kane. A mixture of nine and ten, a striker that wants to be involved in the play rather than just being at the end of it,” Mitrovic explains. “It’s rare to have a player that can be good in the box, but can also be used deep against teams that press or create play against opposition that sits deep,” the Serbian forward adds.
Gordon’s move
With Woltemade being moved to the midfield, Howe has recently used winger Gordon as a striker. The move has paid off so far – in his new position, Gordon put four goals in a single game past Qarabaq and scored the winner against Chelsea this past weekend. “It can be a great move,” Mitrovic believes. “I think he would prefer to be on the left wing, his natural position, but he can be a very effective striker against some teams. Like Chelsea, who play a very high defensive line, try to attack you at all times, which leaves a lot of space. Players like him can exploit that space,” he adds.
The Magpies fans are also hoping for a boost from another big-name signing from last summer. Former Brentford striker Yoane Wissa has just one Premier League goal to his name for Newcastle, and most of his time at St. James’ Park has been marred by injuries. “He’s a great player, he showed that for Brentford, playing alongside Ivan Toney and scoring many important goals,” Mitrovic recalls.
“Think he would profit from a different formation. Him and Woltemade up front could be a great partnership – a towering striker who links up play and creates space, and a pacey forward who could use that space. But first of all, he needs to fully regain his fitness and needs more confidence. Hopefully, he’ll start scoring more goals and get that confidence back for the key part of the season,” he believes.
