Jamie Carragher and Gary Neville were both in agreement over the best striker in the Premier League after Erling Haaland scored twice on his Manchester City debut
LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND - AUGUST 15: Kelly Cates, Gary Neville and Jamie Carragher presenting for Sky Sports during the Premier League match between Liverpool and Bournemouth at Anfield on August 15, 2025 in Liverpool, England. (Photo by Robbie Jay Barratt - AMA/Getty Images)
Kelly Cates, Gary Neville and Jamie Carragher presenting for Sky Sports (Image: Robbie Jay Barratt - AMA, Getty Images)
Jamie Carragher and Gary Neville rejected claims that Alexander Isak is the Premier League's finest striker, following Erling Haaland's opening-day double against Wolves.
The Manchester City sensation has been a relentless goalscorer throughout his career, and since arriving at City in summer 2022, he has netted an astonishing 86 goals in 98 league outings.
Isak also made his Premier League bow in 2022, switching to Newcastle from Real Sociedad, and has maintained an excellent scoring record for the Magpies despite ongoing speculation linking him with Liverpool.
Yet his tally of 54 goals in 86 league matches doesn't quite match Haaland's exceptional standards - though Isak's displays last campaign prompted some to crown him the division's top striker.
Isak managed one more league goal than Haaland across three additional appearances compared to his Scandinavian counterpart, but Haaland found the net more frequently and at a superior rate across all competitions, reports Liverpool.com.
Content Image
Content Image
Whilst Isak is undeniably exceptional, Neville and Carragher evidently believe he must progress further before earning recognition as England's premier striker.
Speaking on Sky Sports, Carragher remarked: "In the last year or so, it has become that Isak is the best striker, or all-round striker because Haaland just scores goals and it is a bit of a one-trick pony. He is not, he is the best centre forward in the Premier League.
"I know he doesn't always get involved and he is about goals mainly, but his numbers are off the scale."
Neville added: "Haaland is the best centre forward. I spent about seven or eight years saying Sergio Aguero should get 40 goals every season because he is that good. I think the same with Haaland with the amount of chances he gets."
Isak remains heavily linked with a switch to Liverpool as the summer transfer window approaches its conclusion in less than two weeks.
The forward was missing from Newcastle's squad as Eddie Howe's team managed a goalless draw against Aston Villa on Saturday, and hasn't participated in training with his colleagues since prior to the club's pre-season tour of China, which commenced nearly a month ago.
Isak is frantically attempting to engineer a transfer to Liverpool, though Newcastle remains reluctant to part with the striker without securing a replacement.
Newcastle are eager to bring in Yoane Wissa from Brentford, with Wissa adopting a similarly defiant approach to Isak in his efforts to force an exit from his current employers.
Wissa, who failed to appear for Brentford throughout pre-season and was nowhere to be seen as the Bees suffered defeat to Nottingham Forest at the weekend, deleted all traces of the West London outfit from his Instagram profile on Monday in what appeared to be a display of anger over Brentford's unwillingness to sanction his departure.