Alexander Isak sent home from Celtic game as Eddie Howe swoons over the brilliance of Brendan
Eddie Howe lavished praise on Celtic and insisted Brendan Rodgers side look Champions League ready.
League Cup champions Newcastle are preparing for a return to the top tier of European football but the Hoops face a play-off next month to secure their spot back at the top table. However, after watching his side concede four without reply at Parkhead, Howe admitted his side were second best.
The Magpies boss, who looked set to replace Neil Lennon as Celtic boss four years ago only to pul out when he couldn't get his backroom team in place, said: 'We've had an intense week and we looked a little bit jaded. But it was great for our preparation. Celtic were way ahead of us fitness-wise and sharpness-wise.
'It was a great atmosphere and stadium to play in. It was a good standard of football for so early in pre-season. Whoever Celtic draw in the Champions League will be in for some tough games.'
Liverpool-linked Alexander Isak travelled then was sent home. But Howe insists there's been no approach for the £150m-rated Sweden striker.
He said: "He travelled to Glasgow with us but I decided to send him home due to the speculation around him. The last thing he wanted was to be sat in the stand watching - that wasn't fair to him. But I'm confident he will be a Newcastle player come the end of the window."
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And of course his departure left that open for me to do some things that I wouldn't have normally done. 'The summer certainly wasn't a relaxing one for me to switch off and see what happens.' The search for Mitchell's replacement, which saw former Arsenal assistant sporting director Jason Ayto interviewed, now appears to be coming to a close. Nottingham Forest's chief football officer Ross Wilson is their preferred candidate and is set to be offered the role. TRANSFERS Newcastle finally had something to celebrate when Howe managed to get the deal over the line for Anthony Elanga. But the £55m arrival of the winger from Forest has so far been the only addition. Howe, and the likes of skipper Bruno Guimaraes, called for the club to move fast and bolster the wafer-thin squad once the summer market opened. But, Elanga aside, it has been a hugely frustrating window with Toon missing out on four top targets with a FIFTH now looking likely. 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'We're confident that we can try and get some more players in to strengthen the depth of the squad. We're certainly aware that we need to and we're trying as hard as we can to do that.' Newcastle are set to table a £30m offer for Brentford forward Yoane Wissa after the star left Brentford's pre-season camp in Portugal. UPSTAIRS UNCERTAINTY The expected arrival of Wilson as sporting director will be just the latest in a series of changes in the hierarchy. A replacement for much-loved CEO Darren Eales is still yet to be confirmed. It was last September when he announced he was serving his notice after being diagnosed with blood cancer. Ex- Real Madrid executive David Hopkinson is believed to be among the frontrunners for the position. And to add to the upheaval and change, Newcastle appointed Atalanta's director of football intelligence Sudarshan Gopaladesikan as new technical director this week. He will report to whoever comes in to take over from Eales. Any club trying to operate without a proper and in-place executive team will always face issues. And the sooner the upstairs gets sorted then the better for everybody.
