ALEXANDER ISAK has not travelled with Newcastle’s squad on the tour of the Far East amid intense speculation over his future.
The Magpies, who hope to tie the 25-year-old Liverpool target down to a new mega-money contract, announced that the hotshot’s absence is due to a “minor thigh injury”.
Eddie Howe said the Swede would “absolutely” be on the plane after the 4-0 defeat at Celtic on Saturday - despite sending Isak home from Glasgow due to him being affected by transfer speculation.
Now club sources say the star’s ongoing thigh problem needs careful management and therefore they have decided to let him remain on Tyneside for treatment as the rest of his team-mates jetted out on Thursday.
There were fears that two long-haul flights for the trips to Singapore and South Korea could be detrimental to Isak's attempts to be fit for the start of the Premier League season.
But Isak’s absence from the pre-season tour, which will see Newcastle face Arsenal, Tottenham and a K-League All Stars XI, will only fuel speculation about his future.
Newcastle knocked back an approach from Liverpool last week over a potential £120m British record fee and continue to insist they will not sell last season’s 27-goal top scorer.
The Reds then hijacked Newcastle’s move for Hugo Ekitike but Arne Slot still hopes to bring Isak in while Saudi side Al-Hilal are also keen.
But the Magpies’ Saudi owners are backing Howe by refusing to sell and talks are still planned for what will be a bumper new extension to his Toon deal with sources close to the forward indicating he wants around £300,000-a-week to stay.
Though SunSport understands that Isak’s camp were open to seeing what was on offer at Liverpool having been left feeling let-down by Newcastle 12 months ago.
That was due to the promise of a pay rise from his current £130,000-a-week contract made by the club’s former co-owners Amanda Staveley and Mehrdad Ghodoussi failing to happen.
One of the first decisions from the now ex-sporting director Paul Mitchell was to postpone negotiations as he felt the ace was already handsomely paid and felt the club was secure due to Isak being under contract until 2028.
Despite Mitchell’s departure and talks still planned by Newcastle, there has still been no progress, though SunSport knows Newcastle are willing to smash their £150,000-a-week pay ceiling and make him the best-paid player in their history.
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