Keep or sell? Our verdict on the Alexander Isak transfer saga

Telegraph

3 days ago

Eddie Howe has given the strongest indication yet that Alexander Isak will not be joining Liverpool and will remain at Newcastle United this season.
Howe has always made sure to choose his words carefully whenever he has been asked about the transfer saga of the summer, but there was a slightly more bullish tone ahead of their opening game of the season against Aston Villa.
Isak has refused to play in the game at Villa Park and continues to exert pressure on Newcastle to allow him to leave for Liverpool.
Asked directly if he expected the Sweden international to still be a Newcastle player in September, Howe was surprisingly forthright.
'Yes, at the moment I would,' he replied. 'But I've got no change of feeling throughout the summer. It's not in my hands, but he's contracted to us, so that's why I say that.
'Alex's situation has been unchanged for a while and that will continue to be the case. I've had a great relationship with Alex. You need to have that partnership with every player.
'I take my part of that relationship really importantly in the respect that I have to work really closely with the player to his benefit to try and improve them, help them, educate them, sometimes console them.
'There are so many different emotions players go through and I always want to try and be there for them.
'Me and Alex have enjoyed a great relationship and I don't think he'd have done as well as he's done without that, and without his teammates and the supporters and the backing of the whole football club.
'He recognises that as well. He's a highly-intelligent person and he knows he wouldn't have the success here without everybody connected with Newcastle. This is a different moment for him and us and we're working through that together.'
The board have always maintained Isak was not for sale this summer, but have privately conceded if Liverpool were willing to match their £150m valuation, and they were able to sign two strikers before the close of the window, they would be forced to consider letting him leave.
Asked if there was a way back for Isak that would mean he plays for Newcastle this season, Howe said: 'Yes, I believe there is. But, of course, discussions and talks would need to take place for that to happen.'
The case for keeping Isak
Newcastle always knew they would be put under pressure to sell this summer and Liverpool, whether by accident or design, have been able to operate in the perfect conditions to try and sign Isak.
The player has effectively gone on strike to try and force a move after an opening bid of £110m was immediately rejected a fortnight ago.
Liverpool are ready and waiting to pounce if they are given any encouragement from Newcastle their not-for-sale stance has changed – and may even bid again regardless – but Newcastle have been prepared for this moment for months.
The plan, led by Saudi chairman Yasir Al-Rumayaan and with the universal backing of the rest of the board, was to dig in and resist. No matter how much pressure was exerted and no matter how badly the player wanted to leave, Newcastle were always going to fight to keep him.
The message relayed to both player and agent was a simple one. Newcastle have no need to sell, and do not want to sell, a player who has three years left on his contract and is viewed as vital to their success this season.
There are wider ramifications in mind. If Isak can force Newcastle to sell him, against their wishes, with so long remaining on his contract, it will offer encouragement to other players to do the same.
Anthony Gordon, Tino Livramento, Sven Botman and Sandro Tonali would know that, if they want to leave, they can bully Newcastle into selling by behaving like Isak and his agent have done this summer.
The damage done, not just by selling Isak, but to sell well below their valuation of the player, would be an act of self harm and the ripple effects would be felt for the next 12 to 48 months. This is not just about Isak, it is about the whole Newcastle project and their ambition to be a major player in England and Europe by the start of the 2030-31 season.
Sell Isak to Liverpool and not only would Newcastle dramatically weaken themselves, they would significantly strengthen a domestic rival.
If Newcastle had been able to sign a replacement for Isak, as well as a replacement for Callum Wilson, and recouped a fee around the £150m mark, they would have found his departure more palatable.
But they have not managed to sign a single striker yet in this transfer window, having missed out on a number of targets, including Hugo Ekitike who signed for Liverpool and Benjamin Sesko who joined Manchester United.
Tellingly, Newcastle's interest in Yoane Wissa only began when they missed out on Ekitike and they have let it be known that the Brentford player, even if he does sign this month, has always been viewed as a replacement for Wilson rather than Isak.
With only two weeks left of this window, Newcastle simply do not have the time – or the quality of players left on the market – to replace Isak in any way shape or form.
The case for selling
Isak's behaviour has been appalling. He has been widely condemned by pundits and former players alike.
He is clearly desperate to leave and wants to play for Liverpool. So, what is the point in keeping a player who has alienated the fanbase, is likely to be booed and jeered if he does play for Newcastle again and whose heart and head are no longer with the club?
Even if Isak does remain on Tyneside when the window shuts, the road to redemption is a long and difficult one.
There are no guarantees he will ever be the same player he was in black and white stripes, so there is obviously an argument to make that Newcastle should just get as much money as they can and reinvest in the squad.
Newcastle's transfer budget has been severely constrained by profitability and sustainability rules (PSR) and the sale of Isak would give them the freedom to spend heavily in January and again next summer. The sale of one high-profile player could, in the end, benefit the overall strength of the squad. Especially if a replacement striker can be signed and other players weigh in with goals too.
Star players have always left football clubs when they feel like they have outgrown them and keeping an unhappy player comes with all sorts of risks.
The impact on a closely knit team could be damaging. His team-mates have been shocked by the way he has behaved, which is one of the main reasons Isak has been banished to train on his own.
Newcastle's manager has made it clear he only wants players who are totally committed to his team and Isak has made it perfectly clear he is not – at least at this moment in time.
Newcastle must have at least considered letting Isak leave at some point this summer. Had they signed Ekitike or Sesko, they would have at least had someone with the potential to be as good as him once they have settled and developed.
Isak has become a distraction and his future continues to dominate the agenda even as the new season gets underway.
Newcastle could end the circus surrounding him, get a British transfer fee from Liverpool and rebuild the squad over the next two or three transfer windows. It would be short-term pain for, potentially, long-term gain.