Alexander Isak was in the spotlight as Newcastle United lost 2-1 to Chelsea on Sunday afternoon.
Newcastle United’s star striker was involved in almost everything in the match, for both good and bad reasons.
Chelsea’s Nicolas Jackson opened the scoring for Chelsea but Newcastle battled back through Alexander Isak, who latched on to Lewis Hall’s cross to score his second goal of the season.
Cole Palmer restored Chelsea’s lead less than two minutes into the second half and it ended up being the winning goal of the game to inflict Newcastle’s third league defeat of the season.
Newcastle now find themselves 12th in the Premier League table and will face Chelsea again in midweek before facing a visit from Arsenal.
READ MORE: Five things learned as Newcastle United lose 2-1 to Chelsea in the Premier League
Alexander Isak’s performance vs Chelsea
With Anthony Gordon out with a thigh injury, there was even more pressure on Isak to solve Newcastle’s lack of goals.
He did end his goal drought with a well-taken finish in the first half, but the 25-year-old undid all his hard work after the break.
Firstly, Isak gave the ball away which led to Palmer’s winning goal, and the Newcastle striker also squandered a huge chance which left Eddie Howe fuming on the sidelines.
Isak had taken the ball around Robert Sanchez and had an empty goal to aim at and a simple pass across to Joelinton. He ended up completing a stepover and losing possession unforgivably.
It was great to see Isak back among the goals but he still managed to frustrate the fanbase by overcomplicating his chances.
There has been a lot of speculation around Isak’s contract talks at Newcastle with club chiefs unhappy with Isak’s agent. His wasteful performance on Sunday has only added to frustration.
Newcastle United fans react to Alexander Isak’s display
If Isak had taken his chances, Newcastle could have left the capital with at least a point – and maybe three.
His missed chance in the second half left a bitter taste in the mouths of Newcastle supporters, who had a lot to say about the Swedish star on social media.
One supporter accused him of “showboating”, saying: “Alexander Isak if you want to move on because you want a bigger contract, grand, but don’t drag the team down by not finishing simple chances and being a showboater doing step overs while Joelinton was free at the backpost for a tap in”
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A second fan posted: “Everyone deserves their share of the blame, but Alexander Isak has been bad all season. If we had the Isak of last season in the last two weeks, we’d have at least four points.”
Another fan went as far as suggesting that Isak should be fined: “Sorry but that’s unforgivable. He should be fined a week’s wages for that. And his fault for Chelsea’s second goal. Disgrace.”
Others labelled the Newcastle forward as “selfish”, saying: “Alexander Isak with an awful selfish play, he could have easily passed the ball but he decides not to and a chance was wasted.”
That view was shared by others, with one fan saying: “Too concerned about himself rather than the team. Roll it across and it’s a simple tap in.”
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