Alexander Isak and Eddie Howe
IMAGE CREDITS: GETTY IMAGES
Newcastle United manager Eddie Howe has spoken out about Alexander Isak’s future amid strong interest from Liverpool.
The 25-year-old did not travel to Asia for Newcastle’s pre-season tour, missing matches against Arsenal, K-League XI, and Tottenham.
While a minor thigh injury was initially cited as the reason for his absence from the tour, Isak has since been instructed to train away from the first-team squad.
Speaking earlier on Friday, Arne Slot declined to comment on Liverpool’s interest in Isak but confirmed the club will keep exploring potential signings.
“As you know from me and it’s the same for a lot of managers, you never talk about a player who isn’t yours,” Slot said.
“I can talk about Hugo [Ekitike], who we signed recently and has done really well until now.
“We are really happy with the squad we have and there is every reason to be happy about that because we won the league last season. “OK, players left but we’ve brought players in as well and youngsters are doing good.
“At this moment in time, Darwin might leave but things are not signed yet so we need to wait a few days before that’s completely done.
“I think we already have a lot of attacking power in our team.
“When I think about Cody Gakpo, Federico Chiesa, Hugo Ekitike, Mo [Mohamed] Salah, Jeremie Frimpong who can play as a right winger, Florian Wirtz who can play as a left winger, so I already feel I have a lot of attacking options.
“But as always as a club we are always looking at the chances in the market but that can also be in the midfield and the last line.”
Isak missed Newcastle’s 2-2 draw against Espanyol B on Friday night as he trained alone behind the scenes.
Speaking after the game, Eddie Howe said: “We’ve had discussions, and it’s clear at the moment we can’t have him involved with the group.
“I don’t know how long that will be for. It’s clear I can’t involve him with the team at the moment.
“He is training later than the rest of the squad. There have been discussions since the tour. I don’t think disciplinary action has happened.
“He is here, so of course he has a future at Newcastle.
“From our perspective, we would love to have him back with the team, but the situation has to be right for that to happen.”
Asked if Alexander Isak could feature in Newcastle’s Premier League opener against Aston Villa, Howe added: “I want Alex to be playing today.
“I want him training tomorrow. We would love the player to be with us, let me make that absolutely clear.
“There is no part of me that does not want that outcome. But I don’t see the current situation changing before Aston Villa.”
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