Newcastle United have finally found their reinforcements to spearhead their attack, having signed both Nick Woltemade and Yoane Wissa, but they looked at another target who was desperate to leave his club on deadline day.
Newcastle United's striker situation in focus
The transfer window eventually drew to a close on Monday night after months of drama, capped off by Alexander Isak joining Liverpool after not being involved for the Magpies during their opening Premier League fixtures.
His absence from Saturday's goalless draw away to Leeds United led to fans making their voices heard surrounding his absence, though after Fabrizio Romano cleared up some details on how much his late transfer to Anfield is worth, fans may feel a little more positive about the ordeal.
Newcastle United's Alexander Isak celebrates scoring their first goal
He stated: "Alexander Isak arrives in Liverpool to sign a six year deal valid until June 2031. The deal will cost £125m to Liverpool as Newcastle will get £130m — including solidarity payment."
Searching for his replacement, Wolverhampton Wanderers striker Jorgen Strand Larsen was on the Magpies' radar despite seeing several bids for the Norway star turned down. Vitor Pereira was said to have demanded £65 million for his star man.
In the end, Yoane Wissa joined Newcastle for a fee worth around £55 million, bringing the curtain down on a long search for an Isak replacement.
Ultimately, the Geordies were linked with a multitude of strikers to replace Isak and whittled down a long list before coming to a conclusion on who would arrive at St James' Park.
While Newcastle fans rejoice at Wissa and Woltemade's arrival, their window could well have been different if eleventh hour events didn't move things in an alternative direction.
Nicolas Jackson was Newcastle's Wissa alternative
According to The Sun, Newcastle were in talks to sign Chelsea striker Nicolas Jackson if they could not agree a deal with Brentford for Wissa. Incredibly, the Senegal forward refused to come back to Chelsea when called back to cover Liam Delap's injury, and ended up forcing through his loan move to Bayern Munich at the 11th hour.
Nicolas Jackson Newcastle Graphic
Nicolas Jackson Newcastle Graphic
Marc Guiu has been recalled to Chelsea to take Jackson's place instead, allowing him to move to Germany on loan with a buy obligation.
The Magpies had multiple plates spinning, but the 24-year-old was deemed to be near the top of their wishlist and for a price of £60 million. Labelled "fantastic" by Joe Cole, Jackson registered 13 goals and six assists in 37 appearances across all competitions last term, though Newcastle opted to conclude a deal for Wissa, who retained a superior record of 20 strikes in 39 outings.
After months of chaotic action on the market, Howe will feel happy with the options at his disposal in light of losing Isak to Liverpool.