Newcastle United manager Eddie Howe has expressed confidence that Alexander Isak will remain with the club, despite the player missing a recent friendly against Celtic amid swirling transfer speculation. The 25-year-old Swedish striker, who has been linked with potential moves to Liverpool and Saudi Arabian side Al-Hilal, was excused from traveling to Glasgow for the pre-season match.
Howe explained that the decision to send Isak home from the team's training camp in Austria was to shield him from the intense scrutiny surrounding his future. He felt it would be unfair to have Isak sitting in the stands while not playing, especially with the ongoing rumors. Howe stated, "Alex was with us all the way through Austria but, with all the speculation and things that are going on, I decided to send him home". He added, "It's purely the last thing Alex wants, if he's not playing, to be sat in the stand. Being under that scrutiny, I don't think that's fair to the player".
Despite the transfer talk, Howe insists that Isak is happy at Newcastle. "All I can say is that Alex is happy at Newcastle. He loves the players that he plays with, the staff, the team," Howe said. He added that he's "confident he'll be here at the start of the season". Howe acknowledged the difficulty in providing absolute certainty about any player's future, stating, "It's difficult for me to give 100 per cent clarity on any player. I'd never sit here and do that because it's football and you never know what could happen".
Isak's absence from the Celtic friendly, which Newcastle lost 4-0, fueled speculation about a potential move, particularly to Liverpool. However, reports indicate that Newcastle has repeatedly made it clear that Isak is not for sale. The club values him at over £150 million.
Howe is desperate to keep Isak, who scored 27 goals last season. He recognizes the importance of retaining top players, stating, "We have a few of those players who are irreplaceable. Your top players are so hard to find, so hard to recruit, and so hard to develop. So when you have them, you need to treasure them. Of course we're desperate to keep him as part of our team".
Another player who missed the Celtic friendly was Joelinton. Howe clarified that both players were fit but not quite ready to play. Joelinton is returning from a knee injury, and the club is taking precautions to ensure he's fully fit before being reintroduced. Howe said, "Both players are fit but we just felt they weren't ready to play. Joe's coming back from a long injury, so we need to make sure when he's introduced he's ready". Both Isak and Joelinton are expected to be involved in Newcastle's upcoming game against Tottenham Hotspur in Singapore.
