One Newcastle United player has not been pictured boarding the plane to Austria as Eddie Howe’s side jet off for a pre-season camp before their game against Celtic.
Pre-season training is now in full swing ahead of the 2025/26 campaign, which includes the Magpies’ triumphant return to the Champions League.
Before Eddie Howe thinks about that, Newcastle United have a busy schedule of friendlies ahead of them.
Newcastle take on Celtic this Saturday in the inaugural Adidas Trophy. There are set to be over 10,000 Geordies travelling to Glasgow for what should be a memorable friendly. A trip to Singapore for a game against Arsenal in their National Stadium is on the horizon before the Magpies fly to South Korea for a game against a K-League XI and Tottenham Hotspur.
Finally, Newcastle return to St James’ Park for a friendly with Espanyol before finishing things off with a Sela Cup clash against Spanish giants Atletico Madrid.
In the meantime, Newcastle are flying to Austria for a short camp before the Celtic game. The likes of Dan Burn, Bruno Guimaraes, Anthony Gordon and Anthony Elanga were pictured boarding the plane, but one star was seemingly missing from the latest round of photos.
Alexander Isak is pictured celebrating Newcastle United's Carabao Cup win.
Photo by Stu Forster/Getty Images
Alexander Isak not pictured with the Newcastle United squad going to Austria
Unfortunately, it is a rather big absentee for the Magpies. Alexander Isak was Newcastle’s top scorer last season, scoring 23 goals in the Premier League alone.
However, the Sweden international appeared to struggle with fatigue towards the end of the season, and backed out of international duty to nurse a lingering groin problem.
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The 25-year-old would have been expected back in training on Monday alongside other players who took international duty, but pictures from the club’s social media accounts do not appear to show him at all.
With Elanga officially a Newcastle player, many are eagerly waiting to see clips of their first interactions together on Tyneside. The fans are now left waiting for those scenes.
It could be a case that Isak just needs some more time to nurse his groin issue, but it is a surprise to those who expected him back on Monday.
Alexander Isak’s involvement in Celtic friendly a doubt after latest Newcastle United pictures
Brendan Rodgers is looking forward to welcoming Newcastle to Celtic Park. It should be a fantastic day with two clubs meeting for the first time since 2007.
Both teams could meet again in the Champions League next season, with the new format taking the number of games in the league phase up to eight rather than the traditional six when the group stages were in place.
🗓️ Pre-season fixture announcement
We'll be heading to Celtic Park on Saturday 19 July to compete for the first ever adidas Trophy 🏆
Tickets will be on sale from 2pm today ⤵️
— Newcastle United (@NUFC) May 6, 2025
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However, fans are likely not to see Isak in the squad for Saturday’s game if he has not travelled to Austria with the squad.
His absence will give William Osula the chance to impress against a quality Celtic side. Osula admitted he wants more game time at Newcastle, so pre-season is a perfect opportunity for him to show Howe why he should be playing more often.