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THURSDAY | JULY 24, 2025

Malaysian Paper

Trouble brewing Isak may need to force Newcastle’s hand to secure switch despite Howe’s assurances

Ű BY MIGUEL DELANEY

overt conservatism, and even frugality, when the club has a huge chance to do something historic. Their wage bill has – up until recently – been around £60 million (RM348m) less than even Liverpool’s, let alone City. That is known to have led to some frustration. Arteta has also strongly and successfully argued to push the budget out this summer, which is why some well-placed sources think it highly unlikely they will go out any more. And yet this might really be the difference, between glory now, as well potential riches for the future. Many at Newcastle will of course be looking at such discussion and be aghast. He’s still their player, and looks a long way off going anywhere. There, however, it is certainly hard not to agree with one thing Howe said. It’s difficult “to give 100% clarity” on this. The nature of the market means Howe is almost certainly right that Isak stays for the start of the season. But the end of the window? The market would still need to drastically change. – The Independent

consider much less. While every club would love Isak, there are very few who can afford him outright, and only a handful that have the budget this summer. Liverpool evidently have an interest in Isak, but have denied contact with Newcastle. Other sources insist there has been contact, amid a lot of speculation about “power plays” and multi layered strategies. Arsenal were long seen as Isak’s strongest suitor and who the player has previously had an interest in going to. A sudden switch makes sense… until you come up against the pure logic of the numbers. Arsenal don’t currently have the budget to go for Isak. This is, after all, a club who have been haggling over differences of £5 million (RM29m) in add-ons for Viktor Gyokeres. Are we really to expect they suddenly jump £70 million (RM406m) more? The greater intrigue is that Arsenal do have the PSR (Profit and Sustainability Rules) headroom. Many just put this down to the ownership’s willingness to spend, and how much funds are released. Other sources would describe that as

The great question isn’t over Newcastle’s stance but whether Isak will actually agitate to leave. Most have thought that was unlikely due to his personality, but it’s not being said with the same confidence it was. At the same time, the transfer window can bring different forces, and unexpected twists. Things can drastically change when there’s suddenly money on the table. Isak may have to actually agitate to ensure that. Some wonder whether it would be too late. Those close to Isak’s circle insisted as far back as last year that his future is not “clear cut”, and that this was always going to be “a big summer”. Newcastle’s controversial but almost limitlessly wealthy ownership may mean they have even less need to sell than anyone else, but no squad really needs a player around that doesn’t want to be there. So it really comes down to how much Isak’s head has actually been turned. There is still one huge caveat to all of this talk, and that is the size of any prospective fee. Isak is really worth around £150 million (RM870m), and Newcastle are not even going to

N EWCASTLE UNITED may be insistent that Alexander Isak is not for sale, and Eddie Howe may be cautiously asserting his confidence that the Swede will “be here at the start of the season”, but there is a lot more uncertainty within the club. Many are worried. A feeling is growing that Isak’s head has been turned, with that accentuated by the club’s frustrations in the transfer market. The 25-year-old is coming into his prime, and just qualifying for the Champions League is no longer enough. No matter what else Howe says, it is hardly encouraging that the manager admits he has “to send him home” from a pre-season friendly “due to the speculation around him”. That is a strange and conspicuous decision in such circumstances. Some teammates won’t even be drawn on his future. There were still other alarm-bell lines from Howe, even as he maintained Isak is “happy at Newcastle”. Among them were “I respect a player’s career and how short it is”.

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- Story on page 28

- Story on page 29

- Story on page 31

‘Leave him space’

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