Alexander Isak ‘sent home’ as CRAZY Liverpool transfer ignites despite Ekitike offer

Rob McCarthy 20 Jul 2025 8:21 AM

Alexander Isak continues to be linked with Liverpool

Eddie Howe revealed that he sent Alexander Isak home ahead of Newcastle’s 4-0 pre-season loss at Celtic on Saturday due to the ongoing speculation surrounding a potential move to Liverpool, sparking talk that a mega-money move could still be on while also adding a caveat to the Reds’ hopes in the process.

Isak enjoyed an outstanding 2024/25 campaign with Howe’s men won the Carabao Cup, their first trophy in 70 years, while they also secured Champions League football as the Swedish hotshot scored 23 goals and also notched six assists.

Liverpool‘s interest in Isak has been evident for some time and ramped up significantly earlier this week as talk started to emerge from Newcastle that an exit could actually be on the cards, despite the stance from St James’ Park continually being that he is not for sale.

The Reds have since switched targets to outstanding French talent Hugo Ekitike, who also came close to joining the Magpies, with ongoing discussions over a deal with Eintracht Frankfurt believed to be worth in excess of £70million (€80.7m / $93.8m).

While Isak has also been heavily linked with a switch to the Saudi Pro League, Howe revealed after his side’s heavy defeat in Glasgow that he left Isak out of the clash due to the ongoing speculation surrounding his future in a clear indication that the striker has had his head turned by Liverpool’s interest.

“It was my decision,” he said. “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.”

However, Howe did add a caveat to Liverpool’s hopes of still landing Isak, in what would likely end up in them snubbing a proposed Ekitike deal.

He added: “Both [Joelinton and Isak] are fit but not ready to play. Alex has trained and is fine, but we didn’t want to take the risk with him.

“It’s difficult for me to give 100% clarity on any player. Alex is happy at Newcastle — he loves the players, the staff, the team.”

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Romano reveals Isak transfer hopes

Meanwhile, respected transfer insider Fabrizio Romano has revealed the player’s thoughts on the prospective move to Merseyside.

Sources have also told TEAMtalk that, despite Liverpool’s strong admiration for Isak, a deal still looks highly improbable and they are far more likely to sign Ekitike at this stage.

However, despite reports to the contrary, relations between Liverpool and Newcastle remain strong, with Reds sporting director Richard Hughes and Howe sharing a close relationship.

To that end, Romano is refusing to close the door on a possible move.

“From what I’m hearing, Alexander Isak is very calm,” Romano began on his YouTube channel.

“He knows very well that Newcastle want to keep him and he knows that Newcastle want to offer him a really important contract.

“At the same time, he knows that Liverpool would offer not just important money but an ambitious project, too.

“So Alexander Isak is not closing doors to this possibility and Liverpool were never going to make club-to-club contact without a feeling that the player would be open to the idea of a move.”