Newcastle United had little choice but to sell Alexander Isak to Liverpool on deadline day, with the rebel striker having agitated to leave throughout the summer transfer window.
Having banked a British record £130m fee for the Sweden striker, the Premier League challengers can now turn their attention toward the football, for it’s been clear that the noise has disrupted early-season preparations, just two points from three opening fixtures.
Eddie Howe must be frustrated by the whole ordeal, but he and his team have quietly gone about their business these past few months, with the summer dealings coming to something of a pleasing head.
Indeed, the Magpies may well have replaced the irreplaceable.
How Newcastle have replaced Isak
Many strikers were targeted this summer, and it took a long while before Newcastle found a breakthrough in their protracted pursuit, signing Nick Woltemade from Stuttgart last week for a club-record £69m fee.
The German international is only 23, but he scored 12 goals from 17 starts in the Bundesliga last season and drew praise for his silky movements and technical control on the ball. European football expert Zach Lowy remarked his depth of quality is “absolutely ridiculous“.
He might take a bit of time to get up to speed, but Woltemade has the potential to serve as Isak did, playing for Howe as a world-class option.
And with a prolific and Prem-proven dance partner in Yoane Wissa jockeying for purchase alongside him, Howe might just find that he has the tools to replace Isak’s 27-goal return across the past campaign in the aggregate.
Especially when considering that the Toon Academy has come on leaps and bounds. Not just welcoming top talents from the youth ranks, Newcastle are also targeting and winning battles for some of Europe’s most coveted youngsters, and one such prospect could be their new version of Isak.
Newcastle’s new version of Isak
One of Howe’s biggest strengths is his capacity to take talented up-and-comers and shape them into top Premier League players, and Isak has been the perfect example of that.
He might be gone, but Vakhtang Salia could be Newcastle’s next superstar, with United having beaten off competition from teams such as Bayern Munich and Real Madrid to sign him from Dinamo Tbilisi last month, a deal agreed a year prior. Such vast interest from Europe’s elite only demonstrates the immense potential gracing Salia’s game.
Like Isak, the 18-year-old Georgian is tactically dynamic, and while he hasn’t refined his shooting ability yet, he has been praised for his “very high work-rate” by Genk scout Mikha Gabechava.
With pace and technical skill, he has often found a role out on the left, something Isak has done efficiently when called upon at Newcastle.
|
Salia – Career Stats by Position |
||
|---|---|---|
|
Position |
Apps |
Goals (assists) |
|
Centre-forward |
34 |
6 (1) |
|
Left winger |
22 |
2 (3) |
|
Right winger |
4 |
1 (0) |
|
Attacking midfield |
1 |
0 (0) |
|
Stats via Transfermarkt |
||
Still finding his way after a month getting into gear at St. James’ Park, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see Salia handed some first-team minutes across the campaign, especially with Isak having been sold.
It might be a touch premature to start listing this teenager as the next version of the Sweden international, but Howe and Newcastle have the perfect grounds to shape him into a Toon-standard star.
Salia still has a long way to go, but there’s no question that he’s endowed with all the physical and technical qualities needed to succeed at Newcastle, with journalist Graeme Bailey hailing him as “one of the best teenage prospects in the world”.
