In-form Alexander Isak has handed Newcastle United’s “project” a ringing endorsement by reaffirming his commitment to the club.
Asked by i on Tuesday night, shortly after scoring his 19th goal of the season, whether he agreed with Eddie Howe’s assertion that he would be staying at Newcastle in the summer and beyond, he said: “Yeah, of course I want to be here in the future.
“I came here for the project, I absolutely love playing here, I really feel at home. I want to finish this season in a good way for me and the team. I love playing here.”
It feels like a big statement at an important time because Isak is currently on course to become the first Newcastle player since Alan Shearer to score more than 20 goals in a season. His status both at the club and externally – where there has been talk of a £100m valuation and interest from Arsenal and Tottenham – is beginning to hit similar heights.
When he signed, for a club record £63m 18 months ago, it felt like Newcastle’s soaring trajectory was inevitable.
The second half of this year has offered a more sobering reality: that financial fair play and the strength of the established order mean the club has a huge challenge in front of them to become really competitive.
The simple fact is: if Newcastle are to have any hope of catching Arsenal at some point, retaining their figurehead Isak is of vital importance.
The 24-year-old is not just a fine goalscorer, he is also the scorer of fine goals: a modern striker who is strong, quick, technically and tactically gifted and able to drift and assert himself in pockets of the field that make him a nightmare for opposition defences. If he is not yet among the elite strikers in world football, he surely soon will be.
Indeed he is currently scoring goals with more frequency than either Erling Haaland or Mo Salah (Isak has 0.85 goals per 90 minutes, as opposed to 0.80 for Haaland and 0.75 for Salah) and best them in terms of goals per shots taken and minutes per goal.
One telling measure: he has scored 15 goals from 45 shots whereas Haaland has 18 goals from 77 shots.
A wonderful solo effort against Everton on Tuesday was his third goal in two games and came after Howe insisted the club would not be interested in selling him in the summer, despite Newcastle’s much-publicised brush with the Profit and Sustainability Regulations (PSR).
The club had so little PSR headroom in January that they were unable to sign any reinforcements and CEO Darren Eales had admitted that the Magpies must become used to player trading if they are to build in the future. Unpalatable sales, inevitably, feel back on the black and white agenda.
But if Bruno Guimaraes‘ release clause – which is in excess of £100m – makes speculation about a sale inevitable, the same is not true of Isak. He is virtually impossible to replace, the perfect age and, crucially, wedded to what the club are trying to do despite this season’s growing pains.
Asked whether his future would be tied to whether Newcastle get into Europe or not he said: “I don’t want to entertain these type of questions and rumours.
“It’s not my position. I love playing, we have important games, there’s no focus there [on my future], I just want to do good for the team.”
If Newcastle are to move on from this season’s travails, building around their best is key. Even Howe, who has been honest about the challenges Newcastle’s PSR position puts them in, has been sending not-too-subtle messages about the future of his talisman.
“You have to try and keep your best players, whether you can continue to do that with the rules now, that is not down to me,” he said on Tuesday night.
“To be the team we want to be we need to keep our best players. Isak is a scorer of great goals. His goal was high level. He is electric, fit and confident at the moment.”
He went further still, saying the striker has “limitless” potential. “He has had experiences, travelled to different leagues and we can develop his talent to show what he has,” Howe said.
Having dropped points against Everton, injury-ravaged Newcastle – who had two goalkeepers and four academy players on their bench in midweek – head to Fulham on Saturday in need of some consistency as they chase down West Ham and Manchester United in a congested race for Europa League football.
“We want Europe, that’s our target,” Isak said.
“We want to end up as high as possible, so we have to be positive in that respect. We have to keep winning games and we’ll see which place is available.”
from Football - inews.co.uk https://ift.tt/b4dRqUB
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