Newcastle United face Espanyol tonight in one of two final auditions for the Premier League's big kick off with Alexander Isak's future in the air
Alexander Isak applauds fans
Alexander Isak wants to explore his options(Image: PA)
Newcastle United will not hurry to facilitate Liverpool's attempts to sign Alexander Isak - and the striker may be made to sweat until the end of the window to get any move to Anfield.
Head coach Eddie Howe has maintained a dignified silence on Isak since he returned to the club's Benton base this week and the door remains open to him to prove his fitness in time for the big kick off.
Crucially, Newcastle still hold the cards when it comes to Isak's situation with the Sweden international having three years left on his current deal.
Isak knows that there are still no guarantees regarding his future while Newcastle have told the striker to adhere to the standards maintained by the rest of his team-mates.
Chronicle Live understands that Isak is not isolated by the rest of the squad and hasn't be shunned, with senior team-mates supporting him amid the summer uncertainty.
Isak faces a race against time to fit for the opening day Premier League encounter against Aston Villa on August 16 while Newcastle are also assessing other targets in a bid to have new faces through the door for the game at Villa Park.
However, one thing United are not in a hurry to see is the sight of Isak in a Liverpool shirt going up against them in the opening home fixture of the season on August 25.
That's another thing Newcastle have control over as they aim to start the season in positive manner and insiders feel that they are hardly going to "assist" the Reds into getting three points.
Liverpool have still not submitted a bid bigger than the £100m plus add ons offer that was tabled last Friday when the club were still in South Korea.
Since then Newcastle have returned to training and Isak's fitness has been assessed with the Sweden star currently lagging behind his team-mates after suffering a groin injury and playing no pre-season minutes.
Instead of banishing Isak from the first-team base or relegating him to the reserves at Little Benton, Howe has kept the door very much ajar for the 25-year-old by allowing him to use the first-team facilities and physios.
Howe spoke in Seoul last week and spoke with slight disappointment at learning how he'd learned that Isak was training alone in Spain via the media.
He then told Chronicle Live that Isak had to "earn the right" to train for Newcastle in quotes that went viral after the 1-1 draw with Tottenham Hotspur.
Howe told me then: "There is also another way to look at this. You have to earn the right to train with us. We’re Newcastle United.
"The player has a responsibility here to be part of a team and part of a squad - you have to act in the right way. So that is also at play here. We will make sure that any player does that to earn the right to train with the group."
Isak's future looks ominous at St James' Park, but he has been given a fitness programme to follow and a pathway back to rejoin his team-mates.
But a lot depends on Isak and his own attitude with the feeling internally that his head has been turned his representatives.
The lowdown is, Newcastle will try to sign a striker or two regardless of Isak's situation and Liverpool may have to wait until the end of the month for any type of breakthrough on one of their big targets.
Howe will face the Press tonight after the clash with Espanyol but so far has only spoken of he can "support" Isak while also making it clear that nobody can dip below the required levels of commitment at United.
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