Newcastle United clung on until the bitter end, but ultimately were forced into selling Alexander Isak to Liverpool on transfer deadline day.
Oh well, at least the Toon bagged themselves two successors in Yoane Wissa and Nick Woltemade, and for a similar combined price at that.
But it stings, for the Sweden striker played a talismanic part in winning the Carabao Cup and returning to the Champions League last season, ending three years of prolific performances on Tyneside.
Why Isak wanted to leave Newcastle
Isak, 25, has signed for the Premier League champions in a record-breaking £125m deal and will front Arne Slot’s side for the next six years (unless he pushes for an earlier exit, of course).
While United earned themselves an incredible paycheck for the forward’s sale, the nature of his departure has left more than just a sour taste, with Isak’s hiatus over the past few weeks having directly affected Eddie Howe’s side’s start to the season, two points from three Premier League fixtures.
His goal-per-game rate is a thing to behold, and Newcastle would do very well indeed if Isak’s replacements managed to perform at a level, in the aggregate, resembling his prowess.
|
Top PL Scorers since Isak’s Debut |
||
|---|---|---|
|
Player |
Apps |
Goals |
|
Erling Haaland |
100 |
88 |
|
Mohamed Salah |
111 |
67 |
|
Alexander Isak |
86 |
54 |
|
Ollie Watkins |
112 |
50 |
|
Chris Wood |
95 |
39 |
|
Bryan Mbeumo |
104 |
39 |
|
Data via Transfermarkt |
||
Many of a Toon persuasion feel that PIF should have been stronger in their rebuttal of Isak’s wishes, as was the case way back when with the club’s original version of the 6 foot 3 striker.
Newcastle’s original Isak
David Ginola was one of the Premier League’s original mavericks. The 58-year-old has been retired for many years, but is still remembered fondly by those who recall his days gliding up and down the left flank, sometimes finding a place down the central channel.
Having won the PFA Player of the Year in 1999 with Tottenham Hotspur, the former France international was truly one of the best in the business when in his heyday, and Newcastle must regret having only enjoyed his talents across two campaigns.
Bringing the winger over to England from Paris Saint-Germain in 1995, former boss Kevin Keegan sought to shape Newcastle into a bona fide superpower, and Ginola was very much a part of that process.
A winger of great flair and wow-factor, Ginola hardly enjoyed his most auspicious years at Newcastle, featuring 76 times and posting seven goals and 16 assists, but he still played a thrilling role, one of the most skilful stars to have graced St. James’ Park.
Who could forget that strike against Manchester United?
However, it wasn’t all sunshine and rainbows across those two terms in black and white, having remarked that Newcastle and Keegan had left him feeling “stabbed in the back” after rejecting a move to Barcelona in the summer of 1996.
“It was no disrespect to Newcastle, but a career is so short. When it didn’t happen again, I had to go back. And then when Keegan left us that January, he left me, too. I felt stabbed in the back.”
Ginola felt the potential bid marked a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, but he would stay on Tyneside for another year before earning a move to Tottenham, where he would form the bulk of his football on English shores.
Could there be parallels between the two situations? Isak’s refusal to play for Newcastle was more incendiary, for sure, as was his public statement that demanded the Magpies allow him to move to Liverpool before the end of the transfer window. He got his wish.
Ultimately, neither player went on to play for many years at Newcastle after a powerhouse came a-calling, and though the present Isak situation stings, Howe has instilled a winning mentality, and St. James’ Park will sing again without the Sweden sensation in their mix.
