Eddie Howe gives update on Alexander Isak's Newcastle future amid Liverpool's £150m interest

Newcastle United manager Eddie Howe has given an update on Alexander Isak's future at the club amid speculation that he will join Liverpool. 

Isak, 25, has not flown out to a tour of the Far East with his team-mates following the transfer links. 

Howe has now confirmed that he will not be linking up with the squad, as the Newcastle boss must now contend with the prospect of potentially losing his star player ahead of the new campaign.

The update on the situation from the Magpies boss comes after Mail Sport exclusively revealed earlier this week that Isak wants to explore a move away from the club this summer.

The striker did not travel with the squad on their pre-season tour of the Far East on Thursday after leaving training with a thigh injury on Monday.

However, in a bombshell development, Mail Sport revealed how the club’s hierarchy are aware of Isak’s wish to consider his options this summer, with Liverpool readying a British record offer.

The 25-year-old has three years to run on his contract and chief executive Darren Eales said in March that a new deal would be discussed at the end of the season.

For now, though, Isak and his camp do not want to commit, with Liverpool’s interest their priority.

Newcastle’s owners and Howe do not want to sell and the preference would be to negotiate fresh terms, even if that meant a move next summer. 

That possibility remains, given Newcastle are in a strong position contractually, but an offer from Liverpool or any club in the region of £150million, coupled with Isak’s own wishes, could see a move accelerate in the coming weeks. 

Howe subsequently said that Newcastle have a ‘decision to make’ on the future of  Isak - but says it must be for the best of the club.

When asked if he wanted a quick resolution, the Newcastle boss said: ‘I wouldn't put a timescale on it. I think with these situations it has to be right for the football club, and everything then is taken into context below that.

‘But the club will make the right decision with all the information that it has, and ultimately to try and move the club forward in whatever way that is. Then it's up to us to make good decisions the other way and try and improve the squad as best we can. That’s what we're trying to do, regardless of Alex's situation.

‘But I think there's a wider picture here. There's a whole football club that has to make the decision. The ownership, together with the board of directors, especially with the money involved in modern day transfers. The manager of course has an opinion, but ultimately the decision will rest with the board.’

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