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Reports have disclosed the contract demands made by Alexander Isak to Newcastle, following speculation sparked by a supporter’s claim that the forward practiced solo on Tuesday, amid ongoing uncertainty about his future.
Liverpool has shown interest in acquiring Isak this summer, yet the Premier League champions might need to pay upwards of £125 million to persuade Newcastle to part with him.
The Magpies have firmly stated that Isak is not on the market, leading Liverpool to redirect their attention toward Eintracht Frankfurt’s striker Hugo Ekitike, who is expected to transfer in an £80 million deal.
‘We are indeed studying and analysing all options, and we may be close to finalising the next step for the player,’ Gaitan said.
‘Without revealing any details regarding whether Isak will transfer or stay with Newcastle.’
Alexander Isak has reported demanded a huge increase to his wages to remain at Newcastle
The forward, who has been linked with Liverpool, is claimed to want £300,000-a-week to stay
The report comes amid claims Isak had trained alone at Newcastle training ground on Tuesday
According to talkSPORT, Isak and his representatives have made his demands clear over conditions for a new contract, with the Swedish star reportedly seeking £300,000-a-week to commit his future to the club.
It would more than double the £120,000-a-week wages currently earned by Isak under a six-year deal he agreed in 2022, when he signed from Real Sociedad for £60m.
The demands would break Newcastle’s tightly controlled wage structure.
Amid reports of Isak’s contract demands, one eagle eyed supporter shared a photo on social media which appeared to show the forward training alone on Tuesday.
‘Isak training on his own today, that’s him away to Liverpool,’ the fan wrote.
The image appeared to show Isak during a fitness drill with a member of Newcastle United staff.
Isak had been left out of Newcastle’s 4-0 pre-season defeat to Celtic on Saturday, with manager Eddie Howe later admitting the decision was due to ongoing speculation over the striker’s future.
Howe said speaking after the friendly match: ‘I chose to send him home.
Isak was in training last week with Newcastle at a pre-season camp in Innsbruck, Austria
Eddie Howe left Isak out of Newcastle’s friendly match with Celtic amid transfer speculation
‘The last thing Alex wants if he is not playing is to be sat in the stand and under that scrutiny, then if he wasn’t going to play today, we mutually agreed he shouldn’t be here.
‘It was my decision. He travelled back to Glasgow with us, but I decided to send him home due to the speculation around him. Both [Joelinton and Isak] are fit but not ready to play. Alex has trained and is fine but we didn’t want to take the risk with him.
‘Yes, I’ve had discussions with him, but that’s not abnormal,’ he added. ‘I respect a player’s career and how short it is. Alex has been really good, he’s trained really well and I realise there’ll be noise around him.
‘We have a few of those players who are irreplaceable. Your top players are so hard to find, so hard to recruit and so hard to develop. So when you have them, you need to treasure them. Of course we’re desperate to keep him as part of our team.
‘I think it’s difficult for me to ever give 100 per cent clarity on any player, I’d never do that.
‘All I can say is Alex is happy at Newcastle, he loves the players, the staff, the team.
‘I’ve never had any issue with him and I’m confident he’s going to be here at the start of the season.’
Newcastle are set to begin their pre-season tour in the coming days, with the Magpies facing Arsenal in Singapore on July 27.
Howe’s side will also face an all-star K League side and Tottenham in South Korea.
