Newcastle continue to work away on new deals despite the ongoing Alexander Isak saga
Newcastle United manager Eddie Howe
Newcastle United manager Eddie Howe has left Alexander Isak out of first team training
(Image: Stu Forster/Getty Images)
Newcastle United are yet to receive a new offer from Liverpool for wantaway Sweden striker Alexander Isak.
Eddie Howe this morning confirmed that Isak continues to train alone and is not in contention for the trip to Aston Villa, despite attempts by the head coach to get him to change his mind.
Howe insisted that Newcastle remain active in the market and it is understood that Newcastle are in for TWO strikers.
In his first Premier League media briefing of the season, the Toon boss said - as things stand - expects Isak to remain a United player as he is still "contracted" to the Magpies.
Howe, speaking at his Press conference ahead of the Aston Villa, said: "No, there has been no change, all my focus has been on training and Villa and the transfer front.
"That is all-consuming, Alex's situation has been unchanged for a while, and that will continue to be the case.
"I said many times this summer, I want him to train, I want him to play. But I think those conversations need to remain private.
"I've had a great relationship with Alex. You need that with every player. I take my part in that relationship really seriously. I have to work really closely with the player to his benefit."
Howe insisted that he was trying to sign a new striker whether Isak stays or not and said: "We are looking to sign a striker and the best one we can.
"It’s a very small field, though. Irrespective of Isak’s situation, we need to sign a striker."
When asked if Isak could even be here in September, Howe said: "At the moment I would say yes but I've had no change of feeling throughout the summer. He's contracted to us but it's out of my hands."
Howe simply wanted to focus on the first game of the season, and while he won't have new signing Jacob Ramsey on board yet, with the star completing his medical today, he will have Malick Thiaw involved and new signings Aaron Ramsdale and Anthony Elanga.
Howe said: "I think the players are now ready to play and we are looking forward to the challenge ahead.
"I think everybody is available apart from Joe Willock, and he is not too far away himself.
"We have a relatively full squad. The majority have had good minutes on the pitch.
"Malick will be part of the squad. He's trained for two days. It's never easy coming in at the end of pre-season when our work is almost done but in the little bits we've seen, we've signed a top quality player."