Newcastle United manager Eddie Howe has called for clarity over the future of wantaway striker Alexander Isak who continues to be linked with a big-money transfer to Liverpool.
Speculation over the 25-year-old’s future has been rife for some time, but talk of an exit from St James’ Park intensified towards the end of last month when reports claimed that the Sweden international had expressed a desire to leave the Magpies and explore his options.
Having already missed pre-season and Newcastle’s opening Premier League match of the new season, Isak was once again absence as a spirited Magpies side were edged out by none other than Liverpool in a **five-goal thriller**at St James' Park on Monday night.
Isak’s refusal to play for Newcastle comes less than a week after he released a bombshell statement to address his situation, confirming that he “can’t continue” with the Magpies having “lost trust” in the club that have "broken promises".
Newcastle responded just a few hours later with a statement of their own, insisting that “no commitment has ever been made” to let the striker leave this summer and they "do not foresee" him being sold, as the conditions required for them to sanction a sale before the September 1 deadline are unlikely to transpire.
Newcastle United manager Eddie Howe on August 3, 2025
‘We want clarity over Isak’s future’, says Howe
Howe has already admitted that Newcastle are in a “lose-lose situation” over Isak and the Newcastle boss is keen for the striker’s future to be resolved as quickly as possible.
Newcastle’s owners allegedly met with Isak earlier on Monday prior to kickoff against Liverpool, but Howe insisted after the match that he is not aware of what was said during those discussions.
"I've not been party to talks on this for a long time now,” Howe told reporters. “I've been preparing the team and giving all my energy to the players that want to play for Newcastle. I think that is where my energy is best put at the moment.
"We want clarity, we want to move forward, we want the narrative to change because we're in the start of the season now.
"We're into the action and we've got to get results, and we've got to try to focus on what we can control. We've given two really, really good performances, we've ended up with one point.
“That's tough for us to take, especially in this moment where you're looking for positives to cling to. But we battle through and we now go on to Leeds."
Liverpool manager Arne Slot pictured on August 15, 2025
Big-spenders Liverpool set for busy end to summer transfer window
Almost four weeks have passed since Liverpool had a £110m opening offer for Isak rejected by Newcastle, who have been holding out for at least £150m throughout this summer.
The Magpies are allegedly braced for a fresh bid from the Reds, who have already spent over £300m on eight new players this summer and remain keen to bolster their forward line following the departures of Luis Diaz and Darwin Nunez.
Should Liverpool move away from a deal to sign Isak, they could instead pursue a move for Real Madrid’s Rodrygo who is said to have been identified as a ‘genuine target'.
Arne Slot’s side are also believed to be in the market for a new central defender and continue to be linked with Crystal Palace captain Marc Guehi, who is out of contract at Selhurst Park next summer.
Meanwhile, Newcastle are hoping to sign at least one new striker in the final week of the window, but they have been left frustrated in their pursuits of Jorgen Strand Larsen and Yoane Wissa after seeing bids for both players rejected.
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