Eddie Howe slams Alexander Isak’s behaviour as Newcastle move on after Liverpool transfer

Alexander Isak damaged his reputation at Newcastle by refusing to play for the club while trying to force through a transfer to Liverpool over the summer, according to Eddie Howe

Eddie Howe has blasted Alexander Isak for wrecking their relationship after admitting the £125million striker refused to play for him.

The Newcastle United head coach held crisis talks with Isak after he’d refused to go on the club’s pre-season tour to the Far East before a further snub was delivered when the striker was asked to play against Aston Villa last month.

Isak’s move to Liverpool went through on deadline day, but Howe reflected on the breakdown of their rapport, with Howe admitting Isak went “on strike” at Newcastle.

As life in the Premier League for Newcastle officially starts without Isak against Wolves on Saturday, Howe said: “The moment he went on strike the relationship changed. And yeah, I think that was the turning point in our relationship. Communication became difficult from that point onwards.”

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Isak has been replaced by Yoane Wissa and Nick Woltemade, but the DR Congo man has been ruled out of the encounter with Wolves due to a knee injury.

It will be £69m Woltemade who leads the line against Wolves with the German having a hard act to follow. Howe added: “Alex and I always enjoyed a great relationship.

“I loved working with him and hope that he loved working with us. We hope it was mutually beneficial; we helped him as a player, and he helped us as a team. We helped him become the player who departed us, and he helped us achieve some important milestones. He was part of a very successful team.”

But after Isak refused to travel to the Far East for pre-season, he opted against making himself available for the Premier League campaign.

Howe has asked for time and patience on his new signings, but both Wissa and Jacob Ramsey will not face Wolves. Ramsey could be out for a month after suffering an ankle injury at Leeds two weeks ago while Wissa has a knee issue. When asked if the window was a success, Howe said: “Time is always the best judge of that. We will see how it is viewed.

“My gut feeling is it has been strong. It is hugely important to move on. With the schedule of games coming up, it’ll be a quick turnaround, and we will need a full squad available. That is why we have needed people around the last two weeks.

“We always have challenges in different ways. Whether it was a successful window or a challenging window, time will be the judge of that. It is a clear focus now. It is just football now so no distractions.”

Eventually, Howe expects Wissa to be a good signing and said: “He is an established Premier League goalscorer which is very difficult to find, he has a history of scoring goals and been a difficult player for us to handle. I admire the journey he has been on, it has not been easy for him. He has had big steps to make and he has always made them.”

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