David Ornstein said Liverpool target Alexander Isak would be back at Newcastle this week but The Sun have been entirely caught off guard by it.
You ain’t got no alibiMediawatch is not particularly on board with imbuing pre-season friendlies with too much importance; if Mikel Arteta wants to call them ‘tests’ he can but anyone suggesting a new signing playing in the Premier League Summer Series counts as their ‘debut’ can sod off.
On the other hand, actual football is entirely preferential to the gaping void that has been a summer with two separate transfer windows, so let’s not examine this gift horse’s mouth too thoroughly.
Yet a return to action means a new kind of sensationalism beyond transfers that frankly we could all do without.
The Sun website, for example, have the ‘ugly scuffle’ between Bruno Fernandes and Iliman Ndiaye as the biggest story in the sport, while talkSPORT have it down as an ‘ugly off-the-ball clash’.
Then there is Goal, who reckon the sort of cynical, typical, reckless clip of the heels Fernandes commits roughly five times per game was actually a ‘brutal foul’.
But the MailOnline have the best take with this:
‘Bruno Fernandes and Iliman Ndiaye come to blows in fiery clash as Everton hold Man United to 2-2 draw in Atlanta’
They engaged in some mild and brief pushing and then soon got on with their lives. If that is enough to ‘come to blows in fiery clash’ then Mediawatch has a couple of scraps every time they catch a train.
So furious B.I.GFernandes somehow managed to pull himself away from his dust-up with Ndiaye to speak to the press after the game, which is almost always inadvisable.
And once the Daily Mirror website inevitably get hold of those quotes it is basically anyone’s guess as to how and which way they will be skewed.
This is an exceptional effort atop their football homepage at peak traffic time:
‘FURIOUS FERNANDES! Manchester United captain demands new signings and points finger at transfer chiefs after ‘lazy’ performance in final game of pre-season tour’
Now that’s a headline. Slightly worrying that the only bit in quote marks is the part about a “lazy” performance at the end of an unbeaten pre-season tour of the United States but still, we have fury, we have demands, we have pointed fingers. It’s beautiful.
And just look at the rage contained within these words:
“I don’t want to have a dig at anyone.”
Good start. Very ‘furious’.
“But I think the club is doing the best they can in terms of all the financial situations they talk about. I don’t know about it, I’m not involved in that. But obviously it was crystal clear we needed more competition for the players that were here.
“We needed more quality to get everyone to step up a bit more and to have more to do to get into the starting line-up. I think that’s what the club and the manager are trying to do and hopefully we can get one or two players more to help with that.”
The bloke is incandescent. Those transfer chiefs should consider themselves told.
Even better is that we have actual footage of this outburst:
“We needed more competition, more quality… that’s what the club is trying to do”
Bruno Fernandes outlines what he believes is an improving situation at Manchester United 🗣️ pic.twitter.com/G7B5T8n960
— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) August 3, 2025
Raging.
READ MORE: Seven banished players who have been stripped of their shirt number this summer – including three No. 10s
Alexander the lateIt was reported by David Ornstein of The Athletic on Saturday that ‘Alexander Isak is returning to the UK and is set to resume training with Newcastle United’.
So quite how Isak turning up at Newcastle’s training ground on Monday morning – obviously for ‘showdown talks’ – can be described as both a ‘shock arrival’ and ‘shock entrance’ by The Sun website is unknown.
A piece of that asExceptional ‘as’ work from the Daily Star website here…
‘Liverpool confirm striker transfer as Alexander Isak arrives at training ground’
…in really maximising Liverpool’s signing of 17-year-old forward Will Wright from Salford. It must almost offset the frustration at not being able to fit a mention of ‘Newcastle’ between ‘at’ and ‘training ground’.
And I’m feeling goodAnd a pat on the back, too, for the Daily Mirror website for this offering:
‘Alan Shearer makes feelings clear on Alexander Isak Liverpool transfer – ‘Get him out”
The full Shearer quote, of course, is that Newcastle should “get him out” if a) “he can’t be persuaded to stay”, b) “someone offers Newcastle what they want” and c) “you get other people in, hopefully before”.
He made his feelings clear alright. You just obfuscated them.
MORE ALEXANDER ISAK COVERAGE FROM F365
👉 Liverpool ‘have played a blinder’ over Isak to ‘gazump’ Newcastle ‘no matter what’
👉 Newcastle owners put ‘wheels in motion’ to pave way for Isak to join Liverpool
Star-gazing‘Fans stunned as ex-Prem star is unveiled as shock new signing before friendly’ – The Sun website.
Zero goals in 671 minutes across 12 appearances for Newcastle more than a decade ago for Luuk de Jong.