Alexander Isak has been accused of “not wanting” Newcastle United to qualify for the Champions League as that would make it harder for him to secure a desired move to Liverpool.
Isak eventually got the move he had been pushing for all summer. To surprisingly little fanfare, Liverpool announced the £125 million ($167.8 million) capture of the Swedish forward on Monday evening. As Isak noted in a brief statement: “It’s been a long journey to get here.”
According to , that journey began back in the first half of 2024 when Newcastle’s former minority owner Amanda Staveley supposedly promised Isak a new contract that summer. Staveley was dislodged in June, making way for Paul Mitchell who reportedly withdrew the inflated contract offer.
Isak’s slow start to the 2024–25 campaign—he mustered one league goal over his opening six appearances—was put down to the extension U-turn, which left the Swede “incandescent.”
Eddie Howe managed to cajole Isak back into form, overseeing a prolific run at the turn of the year which was capped by the winning goal in the Carabao Cup final against Liverpool. It was at this point that the 25-year-old became “quiet and withdrawn,” according to .
From that point onwards, the report sensationally claims some inside the club felt Isak was “behaving like someone who did not want the team to qualify for the Champions League.”
Over the period in question, Isak scored four Premier League goals, half of which were penalties. However, only two players in the division racked up a higher non-penalty expected goals tally than Newcastle’s frontman across April and May. What’s more, Isak converted an 89th-minute penalty to earn a crucial point against Brighton & Hove Albion with three games of the campaign remaining.
