Newcastle United’s wantaway striker Alexander Isak will not be in the squad when they host Premier League champions Liverpool on Monday, said boss Eddie Howe, who called the tense standoff a “lose-lose” situation.
Isak was the subject of a 110 million pounds ($148.34 million) bid from Liverpool earlier this month, according to media reports, and in a social media post on Tuesday accused Newcastle of breaking promises.
Newcastle responded by saying there had been no commitment to sell the 25-year-old who is under contract until 2028.
“There’s been no change,” Howe told reporters on Friday. “It’s a lose-lose situation. I don’t think we can come out of this winning in any situation.”
Should Isak still be under contract at Newcastle when the transfer window closes on September 1, Howe said he and the players would welcome him back into the squad.
“I have no doubt about how the players will feel. They will feel the same way I do. Alex is a fantastic player, he’s a good person, a good character and a good lad,” Howe said. “If Alex wanted to come back and play for us, the players would welcome him.
“100 percent I want to see him back in a Newcastle shirt.”
Howe said he has not seen Isak, who is not training with the team, this week, adding that conversation between the two has otherwise been normal.
“There’s no issues there. Of course it’s a difficult situation from both sides and it’s far from ideal for both parties,” he said. “When we bump in to each other, we speak but as I say I’ve not seen him this week as he’s training later on and detached from the group.”
When asked about the public statements from Isak and the club earlier this week, the manager said he prefers that “it doesn’t happen publicly.”
“Everything is better dealt with behind closed doors but in this situation, needs must and in this situation the club has spoken and justifiably so in that moment,” he added.
Howe is confident Newcastle’s supporters could forgive Isak if he comes back into the team.
“The supporters will always react off how a player plays and what he gives the team,” Howe said. “There is always two sides to every story.”
Isak will not play against Liverpool, as ‘lose-lose’ situation continues
https://arab.news/c5dtq
Isak will not play against Liverpool, as ‘lose-lose’ situation continues
- Newcastle responded by saying there had been no commitment to sell the 25-year-old who is under contract until 2028
Riyadh derby ends in 5-3 thriller as Al-Hilal return to winning ways
- Al-Hilal remain unbeaten after 24 games but sit third on 58 points — one behind leaders Al-Ahli
RIYADH: It was a night to forget for Ali Al-Bulayhi. Loaned to Al-Shabab this winter after nine years at Al-Hilal, his first game against his parent club turned into a nightmare.
Matchday 24 of the Saudi Pro League resumed at the SHG Arena with one of Riyadh’s most entertaining derbies — Al-Hilal vs Al-Shabab. While clashes with Al-Nassr attract greater anticipation, the history between Al-Hilal and Al-Shabab runs deep.
In the inaugural 2008/09 Saudi Pro League season, Al-Shabab held Al-Hilal to a dramatic 1-1 draw, with both sides scoring in stoppage time before chaos erupted. The result handed Al-Ittihad the edge in the title race, which they converted into the league crown. Al-Shabab later thrashed Al-Hilal in the King’s Cup semi-finals en route to lifting the trophy.
The landscape today looks very different. Al-Shabab have flirted with relegation for much of the season, while Al-Hilal, despite remaining in the title race, slipped to third after a poor run of form.
Yet form often counts for little in derby matches. Al-Shabab pushed Al-Nassr close in a 3-2 defeat in January before falling 5-2 to Al-Ahli a month later. For all their defensive frailties, the pairing of Yannick Carrasco and Abderrazzaq Hamed-allah remains dangerous.
It was no surprise, then, when Al-Shabab took the lead after 13 minutes. Al-Hilal’s defensive vulnerabilities were exposed as Carrasco and Saad Yaslam combined down the left, allowing Josh Brownhill a free strike inside the box that he drilled past Yassine Bounou.
With Malcom and Salem Al-Dawsari rested by Simone Inzaghi in favour of Saimon Bouabré and Sultan Mandash — and Karim Benzema absent — belief briefly grew that this could be Al-Shabab’s night.
The momentum shifted quickly. In the 19th minute, Al-Bulayhi misjudged a header from a long throw, and Mohammed Kanno pounced to volley home the equalizer past Marcelo Grohe.
More misfortune followed for the defender in the 31st minute. A cross from Sergej Milinkovic-Savic appeared routine for Grohe but was inadvertently turned into his own net by Al-Bulayhi.
Al-Shabab responded before the break. On the stroke of half-time, Carrasco released Hamed-allah into the same channel Brownhill had exploited, and the Moroccan forward turned past Kalidou Koulibaly before finishing to level the match.
The parallels continued. Both of Al-Shabab’s goals came from near-identical positions, while Al-Hilal’s third arrived in equally chaotic fashion. Another long throw caused havoc in first-half stoppage time, and Koulibaly redeemed his earlier error by forcing the ball home after a poor goal-line clearance from Al-Bulayhi.
From there, Al-Hilal took control. Winter signing Sultan Mandash made his mark three minutes into the second half, meeting Kanno’s cross with a superb first-time trivela finish to make it 4-2. Minutes later, he turned provider, setting up Marcos Leonardo for a composed fifth.
Still, Al-Shabab refused to fade. In the 75th minute, Yacine Adli’s driven cross evaded everyone and crept past Bounou to reduce the deficit to 5-3.
The visitors pushed for an unlikely comeback, but Al-Hilal held firm to secure victory, much to the relief of their supporters after dropping points in their previous two matches.
Elsewhere, Al-Ittihad continued their revival in a turbulent campaign with a 1-0 win over Al-Khaleej. Danilo Pereira scored the decisive goal, tapping in from a Mahamadou Doumbia corner.
In Qassim, Al-Ettifaq travelled to face Al-Hazem as favourites and took an early lead through Koka. However, Abdulbasit Hindi handled on the line in the 17th minute — echoing Luis Suarez’s infamous intervention against Ghana at the 2010 FIFA World Cup — and was sent off.
Yousef Al-Shammari converted the resulting penalty before Fabio Martins produced a stunning long-range header that could contend for the Puskas Award. Martins later assisted Aboubacar Bah for Al-Hazem’s third in a memorable victory.
Saudi Pro League action resumes on Saturday with four matches kicking off at 10pm: Al-Fayha host Al-Nassr, Al-Najma face Al-Okhdood, Al-Qadsiah take on Al-Taawoun, and NEOM meet Al-Kholood.
