Yoane Wissa has been reliving his Newcastle United journey.
Both his actual journey to Tyneside on the day he (eventually!) signed, then what has happened since he officially became a Newcastle United player.
Yoane Wissa telling Sky Sports about the events of Monday 1 September 2025: “I left my place [in London] at 3am. I drove all the way to Newcastle, arrived around 7am, not even sleep for an hour because I couldn’t sleep. I had a phone call from my agent, told me that we almost found a deal…”
The then Brentford striker explaining: “I thought I am going to sign at 3pm, but 6pm, 7pm, nothing yet, nothing,,,So we have to extend from 7pm until 9pm, nothing. I start calling my agent, ‘what’s going on?’ And they were just like, ‘negotiation back and back’. I signed with 10 seconds left.”
Alongside the Alexander Isak saga that tormented Newcastle United fans as it dragged throughout the summer, the Yoane Wissa one did the same for Brentford fans.
Alexander Isak desperate to join Liverpool and going on strike for a couple of months, refusing to even train with his teammates.
Yoane Wissa desperate to join Newcastle United, also going on strike, though thankfully he swiftly saw the error of his ways and unlike Isak, resumed training with his then club teammates as he hoped a deal with NUFC could still be done.
Both deals eventually happened on Monday 1 September 2025 and the rest is history.
Alexander Isak unable to start any matches for some considerable time having refused to train with Newcastle United.
Due to having had the benefit of group training with Brentford, Yoane Wissa able to start matches as soon as the Newcastle United deal was done.
Of course, before he had the chance to play for Newcastle, the striker started two massive World Cup group qualifying matches for DR Congo…“[After signing for Newcastle United] I was so happy, like really, really happy, looking forward to go to national team. I played the first game, nothing, played the second game, injured.”
Yoane Wissa picking up a bad injury that prevented him playing for Newcastle United until December, some brief sub appearances and then his first NUFC start against Fulham in the League Cup quarter-finals, scoring only ten minutes in, helping United into the semi-finals yet again.
The Newcastle United number 9 declaring: “There’s more to come for sure…I’m not in a perfect peak yet. It is going to take a few weeks to build up and I know I have got a step to achieve. But I know who I am. I’m a hard worker. I love playing football. And yes, I hope I’m going to score many goals here. And I know I’m not one hundred per cent[yet], but there’s more to come for sure. I hope I score a lot of goals, a lot of assists and a lot of wins.”
Yoane Wissa has though found a silver lining due to the injury delay: “My start to life in Newcastle has been strange but it is my destiny. [In a way] I am glad I had this moment I was injured as I could take the time to settle here with my family. But it has been frustrating, especially the last four weeks at the end of the rehab because I really want to be in this club. But I think we took the time perfectly and managed well to come back stronger.”
It was a huge blow for Eddie Howe when Yoane Wissa got injured.
Clearly the plan was for Wissa to be the Premier League ready striker to come in for Alexander Isak, especially in the short-term, similar in terms of having pace and running in behind, whilst Nick Woltemade a different style of striker and one adjusting to a new league, new country, new culture and so on.
Yoane Wissa may not be absolutely fully fit and sharp BUT we have seen more than enough I think so far, to know he will be a huge asset to Newcastle United and get amongst the goals for sure.