Liverpool news: Newcastle stars respond to Alexander Isak transfer as fresh snub comes to light

The dust has now settled on Alexander Isak’s blockbuster £125million transfer from Newcastle to Liverpool on deadline day, although new details are still emerging

Liverpool are beginning life as a new-look squad as they attempt to defend their Premier League title following the arrival of £450million-worth of new players.

The Reds invested heavily in the summer transfer window, landing Florian Wirtz, Jeremie Frimpong, Milos Kerkez, Hugo Ekitike, Giovanni Leoni and Alexander Isak as their headline additions. Unfortunately for Arne Slot, they couldn’t get a deadline-day £35m deal over the line for Marc Guehi, but it was still a real statement of intent.

The international break has given all the clubs a chance to take stock of their situation and Liverpool are no exception. They have made a perfect start to their Premier League campaign, winning all three games against Bournemouth, Newcastle and Arsenal, but there have been signs of weakness.

However, with team to gel on the training pitch coming up, Slot will be confident heading into the fixtures after the current break. For now, though, the stories coming out of the club remain about their transfer exploits. Here are the latest headlines.

READ MORE: Liverpool star rejected transfer exit in second blow after Florian Wirtz snubREAD MORE: Newcastle star makes defiant “not an idiot” claim as he addresses transfer situation

Newcastle respond to Isak exit

The Isak saga dominated the summer transfer window and now that he’s left, the Newcastle squad are happy to focus on other things. Dan Burn spoke about his ex-team-mate while away on England duty on Thursday.

“I’m glad it’s done,” Burn told reporters. “We wanted the transfer window to shut just to get a bit of clarity on it. I have been in football long enough to understand that for a player, careers are short. For me, it is a tough situation because Alex is a mate, so you want him to be around helping the team, but I have nothing but good wishes for Alex.”

Anthony Elanga, who swapped Nottingham Forest for Newcastle in £55m, saw his Sweden team-mate leave before he could play alongside him at club level. He told Fotbollskanalen: “Isak is a Liverpool player right now. I have the chance to play with him in the national team. He had a good career at Newcastle, but right now he is a Liverpool player. Good luck to him.”

Leoni snubbed Magpies

We knew that Newcastle were unsuccessful with attempts to sign Ekitike before Liverpool landed him for £69m, but now it has emerged that there was a similar situation with Giovanni Leoni. The Reds got him last month for £26m, but only after the club rejected a bid from the Mapgies.

“I’ve always said we wanted to keep him, and he’s always said he’d be happy to stay here. We even turned down an offer from Newcastle, which was more advantageous than the one Liverpool eventually made,” Parma chief executive Federico Cherubini told Gazzetta di Parma.

“When the Reds came forward, our plans changed: both because the offer was very attractive and because the player made it clear he was very happy to take advantage of this opportunity. On the one hand, it’s disappointing to lose such a promising young player, but on the other, we’re proud to have believed in him in unsuspecting times, when he’d only played a few games in Serie B.”

Salah succession plan

Mohamed Salah remains at the top of his game for Liverpool and signed a new contract earlier this year. But the club are already plotting how to replace him when the time comes, with Bayern Munich star Michael Olise their prime target.

Olise left Crystal Palace for Bayern last summer for £45m, but Liverpool hope that their strong relationship with the German club may help lure him back to the Premier League. They have done business for Sadio Mane, Ryan Gravenberch, Thiago Alcantara and Luis Diaz in recent years – and that could help.

Salah is now 33 years old and, although he scored 34 goals last season, Liverpool have already got one eye on the future. They have already recruited younger players for the other attacking positions and Olise could be the next arrival in the summer of 2026.

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