Newcastle United have been hit with the agonising bombshell that Alexander Isak wants to explore his options in the summer transfer window and has reportedly rejected a new deal.
The summer transfer window is going from bad to catastrophic for Newcastle United, as it’s now been revealed that Alexander Isak is open to leaving the club.
Isak’s future has been in doubt throughout the summer, with first Arsenal and now Liverpool very keen on signing the star striker.
Newcastle maintained that they wanted to keep Isak and would turn down any approach, with Eddie Howe desperate to keep hold of his best player.
That’s exactly what they did last week when they made it clear to Liverpool that Isak wasn’t for sale, only for the Premier League champions to go and sign top target Hugo Ekitike in retaliation.
However, it now appears they could still get their hands on him after all, as the Daily Mail reported on Thursday that Isak ‘wants to explore a move away from the club.’
Though that puts Newcastle in a precarious position, they still have a lot of leverage in the saga thanks to Isak’s contract, even if he has rejected a new deal.
- Who is Alexander Isak? The striker who burned his Newcastle United reputation to force £125m Liverpool transfer
Alexander Isak rejects new contract at Newcastle United
It’s been reported by Martin Hardy at The Times that Isak has rejected a new contract at Newcastle.
Isak has reportedly ‘turned down’ the club’s ‘attempts’ to extend his contract and is exploring his options as he seeks a massive £300,000-a-week wage.
If there’s one glimmer of hope for Newcastle in their chances of keeping hold of Isak, it’s that his medium-to-long-term future is still tied down at St. James’ Park.
Isak signed a six-year contract upon signing for the club as their record signing at £63m in 2022, and he still has three years remaining on it.
That means Newcastle have Isak secured until 2028 and aren’t under massive pressure to sell. Yet, anyway.
CEO Darren Eales said in March that Newcastle have ‘no intention at all of those players being moved on’ when discussing the club’s top stars, and wanted to open talks over a new contract with Isak this summer.
Though that hasn’t gone to plan and it looks as if the walls are closing in on Newcastle, they still have a strong position as they try and keep hold of their biggest asset.
The transfer fee that could see Newcastle United sell Alexander Isak
As hopeful and defiant as Newcastle can be, the harsh realities of football are that if a big player wants a move, they usually get it.
Though it’s painful, there’s rarely ever any use in keeping an unhappy player at a club, even one as good as Isak.
Should he agitate further for an exit – having already not travelled on the pre-season tour of Asia, reportedly due to a thigh injury – Newcastle might be left with little choice but to sell him.
The Mail’s report adds that an offer in the region of £150m, which would easily be a British transfer record, alongside Isak’s desire to leave, could ‘see a move accelerate in the coming weeks.’
It does put Liverpool in an interesting position, given they are closing in on signing Ekitike for £80m.
That’s on top of having already broken the British transfer record to sign Florian Wirtz for £116m and spending a further £100m on Milos Kerkez, Jeremie Frimpong and Giorgi Mamardasvili.
In a PSR world, that’s a lot of money to spend and sales are expected.
If Newcastle fans were hoping that they wouldn’t sign both Isak and Ekitike, Fabrizio Romano has reported that Isak ‘remains a target for Liverpool even after signing Ekitike.’
The latest news further compounds a miserable transfer window for Newcastle, with Anthony Elanga the only major addition so far.
Howe has seen the club miss out on several of his top attacking talents, with the Ekitike fiasco following Bryan Mbeumo, Joao Pedro, Matheus Cunha and Liam Delap.
With Newcastle also close to losing out on James Trafford to Manchester City, the upcoming Champions League campaign is threatening to be a disaster rather than a celebration.
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