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Daily Mail
27 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Liverpool youngster rated highly by Arne Slot closes in on new long-term deal - after making last impression on Reds boss
Liverpool youngster James McConnell is close to signing a new long-term deal at the club and going out on loan for the season. The 20-year-old midfielder, who played several times for the first team last year and made a lasting impression on boss Arne Slot, is missing from the pre-season tour of Asia with a minor injury. It is understood that the pain is just a knock suffered in training and he will have treatment on it this week — with the decision made not to travel to Hong Kong or Japan due to the fact the flight could exacerbate symptoms. He should be fine again in around a week. McConnell has interest from Ipswich, West Brom and Derby in the Championship for a loan deal, while German Bundesliga clubs have also posted their desire to sign him. Some of those teams have proposed an option to buy clause in the deal but Liverpool are believed to not want to sell McConnell as Slot is a big fan. In January, the Dutch manager blocked McConnell's exit as he saw him as part of his plans after shining in a Champions League game away at PSV Eindhoven. The Reds have reached an agreement with Eintracht Frankfurt over the signing of Hugo Ekitike McConnell joined the club from Sunderland as a teenager and has played as a No 6 since breaking into the first-team picture. Meanwhile, Liverpool have struck a deal to sign highly-rated striker Hugo Ekitike in a deal worth up to £79million. The Reds had been locked in negotiations with the German side after poaching Newcastle's top target. Ekitike only wanted Liverpool and is set to complete a medical in the coming days. The package is a £69m base fee plus £10m in add-ons which are based on team and player performance. The Frenchman has joined on a six-year deal and he will undergo his medical on Tuesday.


North Wales Chronicle
29 minutes ago
- North Wales Chronicle
No one can afford to buy Alexander Isak, says ex-Newcastle player John Anderson
That is the view of former Magpies defender John Anderson amid frenzied speculation over the Sweden international's future on Tyneside following his absence from the club's first pre-season friendly at Celtic on Saturday. The 25-year-old striker hit the headlines once again last week when Premier League champions Liverpool indicated they would be prepared to offer £120million – around £30m shy of Newcastle's hands-off valuation – for him should he become available. However, Anderson told the PA news agency: 'Once you've got good players and you've got very, very good players, they're always going to be linked with other teams. That's always been the nature of the game and that's never, ever going to go away. 'I just don't think anybody at this moment in time can afford Isak and that's the truth of it. 'There's a lot of speculation about whether he's going to sign a new contract and have the club offered him a new contract – I don't think the boy is in any hurry to sign a new contract because he's got three years left on his present deal. 'Why would he be?' Head coach Eddie Howe revealed after the 4-0 defeat at Celtic Park that Isak had been sent home from Glasgow after a pre-season training camp in Austria because he was never going to play any part in the game as he manages his return from a groin injury. Howe did not want him sitting in the stands as the rumours gathered pace, despite his club's insistence that he is simply not for sale. Anderson said: 'It's a high-profile game, the champions of Scotland against a side that's qualified for the Champions League, but I think all the speculation would have been about Isak sitting in the stand rather than being focused on the game.' The former Republic of Ireland defender, who now covers the Magpies' games as a co-commentator for BBC Radio Newcastle, has witnessed Isak's meteoric rise since his £63m arrival from Real Sociedad during the summer of 2022 and knows how vital his retention is. He said: 'Oh God, he's huge. It's okay getting whatever you get for him, but how do you replace a player like that? That's the bottom line. 'You've got all the money in the world, yes, but can you get a player in who can do what he does?' Anderson played alongside Kevin Keegan and Peter Beardsley at St James' Park and watched Alan Shearer scored a record 206 goals for the club and he believes Isak is a special talent. He said: 'Shearer was a great out-and-out goalscorer, but this boy has got everything. Not only does he score goals, but he creates goals, he makes space for other people, he frightens the life out of defenders with his movement. 'And at the age that he's at, he's still got his prime years ahead of him. He's only going to get better.'

Leader Live
29 minutes ago
- Leader Live
No one can afford to buy Alexander Isak, says ex-Newcastle player John Anderson
That is the view of former Magpies defender John Anderson amid frenzied speculation over the Sweden international's future on Tyneside following his absence from the club's first pre-season friendly at Celtic on Saturday. The 25-year-old striker hit the headlines once again last week when Premier League champions Liverpool indicated they would be prepared to offer £120million – around £30m shy of Newcastle's hands-off valuation – for him should he become available. However, Anderson told the PA news agency: 'Once you've got good players and you've got very, very good players, they're always going to be linked with other teams. That's always been the nature of the game and that's never, ever going to go away. 'I just don't think anybody at this moment in time can afford Isak and that's the truth of it. 'There's a lot of speculation about whether he's going to sign a new contract and have the club offered him a new contract – I don't think the boy is in any hurry to sign a new contract because he's got three years left on his present deal. 'Why would he be?' Head coach Eddie Howe revealed after the 4-0 defeat at Celtic Park that Isak had been sent home from Glasgow after a pre-season training camp in Austria because he was never going to play any part in the game as he manages his return from a groin injury. Howe did not want him sitting in the stands as the rumours gathered pace, despite his club's insistence that he is simply not for sale. Anderson said: 'It's a high-profile game, the champions of Scotland against a side that's qualified for the Champions League, but I think all the speculation would have been about Isak sitting in the stand rather than being focused on the game.' The former Republic of Ireland defender, who now covers the Magpies' games as a co-commentator for BBC Radio Newcastle, has witnessed Isak's meteoric rise since his £63m arrival from Real Sociedad during the summer of 2022 and knows how vital his retention is. He said: 'Oh God, he's huge. It's okay getting whatever you get for him, but how do you replace a player like that? That's the bottom line. 'You've got all the money in the world, yes, but can you get a player in who can do what he does?' Anderson played alongside Kevin Keegan and Peter Beardsley at St James' Park and watched Alan Shearer scored a record 206 goals for the club and he believes Isak is a special talent. He said: 'Shearer was a great out-and-out goalscorer, but this boy has got everything. Not only does he score goals, but he creates goals, he makes space for other people, he frightens the life out of defenders with his movement. 'And at the age that he's at, he's still got his prime years ahead of him. He's only going to get better.'