Alexander Isak has issued a damning statement in which he said his relationship with Newcastle United is now over.
The striker went public for the first time about his summer-long row with the club on Tuesday night and accused them of “breaking promises” and portraying a version of events that did not reflect the reality of his situation.
The 25-year-old, who has not trained with his team-mates for three weeks as he attempts to broker a move to Liverpool, was critical of the position the club have taken throughout the summer.
A section of the statement
Isak had wanted talks to begin about a new deal last summer but that did not happen. The Times reported in April that Isak wanted to play for a “competitive Champions League club” in the following campaign and in June we reported of the impending approach from Liverpool.
The first contact was made on July 15 between the two clubs and there followed a £110 million offer that was immediately turned down by Newcastle. They have repeatedly said the player is not for sale, despite attempts to land a replacement and have unofficially placed a £150 million price tag on the player. Newcastle sources have insisted that Isak was never told in June that he would only be allowed to leave if the club signed two new forwards.
However, they have repeatedly failed to land any potential replacements for Isak through the summer after missing out on Hugo Ekitiké — who joined Liverpool from Eintracht Frankfurt — João Pedro and Benjamin Sesko.
The statement from Isak, issued on his Instagram account, further moves the situation towards an end game. Liverpool are thought unlikely to go anywhere near the £150 million asking price.
“When promises are broken and trust is lost, the relationship can’t continue,” Isak wrote. “That’s where things are for me right now — and why change is in the best interests of everyone, not just myself.
“I’ve kept quiet for a long time while others have spoken. That silence has allowed people to push their own version of events, even though they know it doesn’t reflect what was really said and agreed behind closed doors. The reality is that promises were made and the club has known my position for a long time. To now act as if these issues are only emerging is misleading.”
Isak was absent from the PFA player of the year awards in London on Tuesday night. Once his place in the PFA team of the year had been announced, he wrote on Instagram that his relationship with Newcastle, for whom he signed in 2022 for £63 million, was irreparable.
“I’m not at the ceremony tonight. With everything going on, it didn’t feel right to be there,” he said.
The team of the year, left to right: Kerkez, Gabriel, William Saliba, Van Dijk, Declan Rice, Salah, Mac Allister, Gravenberch, Sels and Wood
MARTIN RICKETT/PA WIRE. RESTRICTIONS
Eddie Howe, the Newcastle head coach, has repeatedly said he hoped a solution could be found to reintegrate Isak back to the Newcastle first-team squad. That seems as far away as it ever has during a traumatic summer.
Isak trained in Austria at the start of pre-season with his Newcastle team-mates, but on returning to Glasgow with the rest of the squad, missed the Adidas Cup clash with Celtic and returned to Tyneside. The Times learnt that was Isak’s decision. He then missed the club’s flight to Asia for friendlies with Arsenal and Tottenham, citing a thigh injury. It then emerged that talks about a new deal had broken down and he had instructed the club he wanted to explore the idea of leaving.
Isak has been training alone at the club’s training ground and the home where he has been living in the North East was then put on the rental market the day after he was omitted from Newcastle’s players and families day. Isak declared himself unavailable for the first game of the season, Newcastle’s goalless draw at Aston Villa on Saturday. Newcastle’s next fixture is against Liverpool on Monday night in a televised game at what is sure to be a raucous St James’ Park. The club’s fans turned on Isak after the draw at Villa Park, with a chant of “There’s only one greedy bastard.”
Newcastle’s stance has remained the same throughout the window that their star striker was not for sale. Liverpool sources said they would not go back in with a second bid but Arne Slot is still keen to add the forward to his ranks and Isak has made it clear he wants the move to Merseyside. Isak scored 27 goals last season, including the second in the 2-1 Carabao Cup win against Liverpool, Newcastle’s first major domestic trophy for 70 years.
He was named in the PFA team of the year alongside what he hopes will be five of his new team-mates. Virgil van Dijk, Alexis Mac Allister, Ryan Gravenberch, Milos Kerkez (who was at Bournemouth last season) and Mohamed Salah were the Liverpool representatives in the team.
Salah with the player of the year trophy
MARTIN RICKETT/PA WIRE
Nottingham Forest duo Chris Wood and Matz Sels were recognised for their excellent campaigns, while runners-up Arsenal had three players in the XI, with William Saliba, Gabriel Magalhaes and Declan Rice all nominated by their peers. For the individual awards it was Salah who won the top prize following his contribution of 28 goals and 18 assists as Liverpool won their first league title under Slot. Aston Villa’s Morgan Rogers was the recipient of the young player of the year award.
Newcastle have been approached for comment.