Newcastle United are still in limbo as the whether Alexander Isak will be on their books next season.
Jamie Carragher has questioned whether Liverpool targeting Alexander Isak is fair on Hugo Ekitike.
Newcastle United, ironically, wanted Ekitike to play alongside Isak earlier in the window. Toon chiefs met with Eintracht Frankfurt officials and had a £70million bid rejected.
Their pursuit ultimately sprung Liverpool into action and, once the Premier League champions were interested, the Frenchman was always heading in one direction. There was talk of the Reds allowing Newcastle to move for Ekitike, providing that left the door open for Isak’s big-money exit.
Alexander Isak bombshell
That did not happen - and it appeared set in stone the Swede would line up as a Newcastle player next season. However, the 25-year-old soon signalled his intention to leave St James’ Park.
Isak has not kicked a ball for the Magpies since May after bailing on the club’s Premier League preparations. Liverpool made an opening offer worth £110million a fortnight ago which was swiftly rejected by the Toon hierarchy.
Jamie Carragher on Alexander Isak saga
Speaking on The Overlap, Liverpool legend Carragher offered his sympathies for Ekitike should Isak arrive. He said: “I just think when you spend £80million on another striker who Liverpool think is going to be the next Isak in Ekitike…
“When you break a British transfer record, that player plays virtually every game. He only doesn't play when he's injured. Would that be fair (on Ekitike) if you spend that type of money on someone? He’s an understudy for me then.
“He's too good and too expensive to be that. He's only going to play when he’s (Isak’s) injured. And it's not where you go, ‘ok, give him a year to bed in’. Next year, Isak's still your centre-forward. Who has been Salah's backup for Liverpool? He hasn't had any. Because he's that good a player.”
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‘Two attackers’ - Jamie Carragher
Carragher did, however, insist Liverpool that need to bolster the frontline. He added: “Liverpool need two attackers. So they do need Isak. But it could be another player. What I'm saying is I'm not fully invested in sort of breaking the bank for Isak. If you remember what happened, Newcastle have got Isak. They went for Ekitike. They made a bid.
“Liverpool were modest in the situation. They got in touch with Newcastle and say, ‘Right, does that mean you want to sell Isak?’ It's not about him as a player (why he is unsure). I do worry about how robust he is to sort of play twice a week for Liverpool.”
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