Newcastle United have rejected a first bid from Liverpool for Alexander Isak that falls well below their £150m valuation as the player continues to seek a move away from St James’ Park.
The Magpies had expected an offer from Liverpool this week and continue to insist the Sweden international is not for sale.
But clearly an official bid – understood to be well over £100m but under the £120m mark that had been communicated in informal talks last month – ramps things up a notch.
Isak’s preference is clearly to leave Newcastle this summer and he has been a notable absence from their tour of the Far East, which concludes on Sunday with a game against Tottenham Hotspur.
He is currently training at his former club Real Sociedad along with his own private fitness team and Newcastle have stayed tight-lipped about the circumstances that led to him flying out to Spain.
A major complication for Isak, as detailed by The i Paper on Thursday, is that Newcastle have not made any significant progress in their hunt for a striker this summer, with their move for Yoane Wissa having stalled due to Brentford’s own desire to have an alternative sourced before contemplating his exit.
Wissa is also viewed as a replacement for Callum Wilson so Newcastle would look to move for another forward if they did decide to cash in on Isak.
But with doubts swirling around their approach for RB Leipzig striker Benjamin Sesko, who also has interest from Manchester United, they are running short on options who could replace Isak without significantly weakening their side.
Among the possibilities floated by the Magpies in recent days are Nicolas Jackson of Chelsea and Aston Villa’s Ollie Watkins, who is understood to be available.
The i Paper has been told that Newcastle will categorically not allow Isak to leave unless they are confident they can bring in players at a similar level and that message is expected to be repeated by Eddie Howe when he speaks to the media in the next 24 hours.
For Liverpool, it is another significant show of force in the market as they look to add Isak to an attack that has already been strengthened by the signings of Hugo Ekitike and Florian Wirtz this summer.
The Reds would take their spending over £300m if they concluded a deal for Isak and there is clearly confidence at Anfield that a deal can be brokered in the coming weeks.
Partly that is because of the strong signals from Isak’s representatives, who have resisted attempts from Newcastle to improve his contract and add in a release clause to virtually guarantee him a move in 2026, when the club might have lined up a successor.
The Magpies continue to leave a path open for Isak to return but supporter unrest at the player’s actions are rising, and even if his teammates have voiced some sympathy for his dilemma, the situation will push closer to breaking point if he does not return to Tyneside next week with the rest of the squad.
What happens next is far from clear but Liverpool’s bold move this week suggests – on the balance of probabilities – that the move is edging closer, possibly for a British club record.
A first bid to test the water was always expected and a second offer is likely in the coming days.
For Newcastle, plotting a way out of this nightmare scenario is going to require definitive action on the recruitment front.
Analysis: ‘This changes everything’
There was a suggestion last week that Liverpool would only bid for Isak if they felt Newcastle were willing sellers, almost painting the Reds as a benevolent force in this saga.
Friday’s bid – a low-ball one, ridiculously below the £120m they indicated they would pay in informal talks last month – blows that out of the water.
They are making life as uncomfortable as possible at a point where Isak’s approach seems to be to make his own position at Newcastle as close to untenable as possible.
It is a murky business but with Newcastle having dug themselves in, both Isak and Liverpool will feel this is the best way to force a resolution.
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Newcastle – who aren’t saying much at the moment – are therefore in the trickiest spot of not closing the door on Isak’s return while also having pressure applied on them by the selling club.
Their response should be forthright and clear: a statement of intent and a message to players not willing to do things the right way.
If you don’t come back with a £150m bid, we can wait it out.
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