· 2 September 2025, 14:00
**Looking back on Alexander Isak's last season, knowing what we know now, it's clear to see that the Swedish striker's head was not in the game at Newcastle United.**
While he still bagged plenty of goals and helped Newcastle to lift their first domestic trophy in 70 years, his season was bookended by an evident lack of effort.
It was a slow start to the campaign for Isak, who had just had a run-in with new sporting director Paul Mitchell, who denied the centre-forward a pay rise he felt he'd been promised by Amanda Staveley, who was no longer with the club.
Then, after the Carabao Cup final, clearly feeling his job was done, Isak stopped trying in games after that. He was practically invisible, his ice-cold finishing had been replaced by wild first-time shots often spooning over the bar. His head had gone.
> [](https://twitter.com/NUFCgallowgate/status/1962295606489006413)
Alexander Isak wasn't guided by his agent as much as we thought
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Now, a report from [The Chronicle](https://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/sport/football/transfer-news/inside-story-newcastle-united-55-32391249) looking into Isak's last 55 days at the club has brought quotes from a club insider to the surface that throws the idea that Isak's head was turned due to shifty agents into the shade.
> "In Austria, it was clear something was wrong. He then didn't travel with the squad to Celtic or on to the Far East.
>
> "It wasn't just the agent turning his head, he was keen to leave. The staff knew if he didn't go to Singapore and South Korea that he'd be off, and so it proved."
I've never wanted a player's career to drop off as much as I do with Isak
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Isak's mystery injury that prevented him from travelling to Singapore was a story that absolutely nobody was buying at the time, and now we all know that it was blatant bullshido.
It's infuriating that his behaviour resulted in him getting his way this summer, but at the same time, there is no way Newcastle could have kept him around. For one thing, Bruno Guimaraes would probably have beaten the crap out of him.
A legacy destroyed in 55 days. I've never wanted a player to fail so spectacularly in all my years following football. Unfortunately, we know how good he is and that he will continue to dominate in that Liverpool side that has now essentially bought this season's Premier League title.