مدير عام كرة القدم
- Isak accused of poor professionalism
- Opening Liverpool bid rejected
- Newcastle striker training alone
Speaking on talkSPORT former Chelsea and Aston Villa striker Tony Cascarino insisted the right thing for Isak to do is honour his commitment to Newcastle, even though the striker has informed the club he is keen on a transfer this summer. Liverpool appear the club most capable of pulling off what could be another British record deal, seeing an opening offer worth £120 million ($159m) rejected, even after already shelling out £79m ($105m) on Hugo Ekitike when Isak seemed out of reach.
Isak has not been with Newcaste’s pre-season squad during the club’s Asia tour. The official line is that he is recovering from an injury, but many fans have perceived it as extreme that the player has been using former club Real Sociedad‘s facilities to train alone, rather than working directly with the Magpies at their base back in England. It has led to accusations that Isak is actively trying to force Newcastle into selling him.
“You see this so often with players,” Cascarino said during one his regular appearances on the radio station. “I always say, if you sign a contract, you have to honour it. You might not like it if other clubs have come in, but you’ve signed it.
“He’s got three years to go, so that puts him in a very difficult position. I’m sorry, I just don’t agree with doing some of the things that players will do. Isak is training at Real Sociedad, and that might have been something he might have even done before if he’s suffering [with] an injury. [But], I just think there’s a line in the sand on this one.
“You’ve got to be careful with the club you’re at. His pre-season is completely messed up by having his head turned. That’s not Liverpool’s fault, or Newcastle’s. It’s sometimes down to the responsibility of a player, who has to handle himself in the right way – and your advisers around you. You don’t have to go to the lengths that he’s done.
“Sometimes, you might have someone advising to ruffle a few feathers and upset a few [people] and make your stance [known], if you want to get the move. But Newcastle are a big club and I understand you may think you can win may more with Liverpool because of how ambitious Liverpool have shown they can be in the transfer market and with winning the title last year. I understand all of that, but you can’t just throw your toys out of the pram every time you don’t get your way.”
Newcastle remain in South Korea until after the weekend, wrapping up the Asia tour with Sunday’s friendly against Tottenham. The team will then return to England and a pair of home friendlies against Espanyol and Atletico Madrid are booked for next Friday and Saturday respectively. But whether Isak will be fit enough to be reintegrated by then, or potentially no longer a Newcastle player, remains to be seen.
