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Liverpool hero Georginio Wijnaldum might sympathize with Alexander Isak's struggle to secure a switch from St. James' Park to Anfield. Isak has found himself at the heart of a transfer saga this summer, with the Reds frontrunners for his signature should he leave Newcastle.
However, Isak's potential exit is proving challenging despite the striker informing Newcastle of his desire to leave, with a $148 million bid from Liverpool being rejected earlier this month. The transfer situation has grown increasingly complicated, with the relationship between club and player deteriorating as Eddie Howe omitted Isak from the team's recent fixtures, while the Swedish striker is currently training alone.
Isak was absent from Newcastle's Premier League goalless opener against Aston Villa, where chants from his own supporters labelled him "greedy". Then on Tuesday, the 25-year-old released a remarkable statement claiming promises have been broken, which Newcastle has since responded to.
Wijnaldum is among the players to have moved from St James' Park to Anfield previously. The Dutch midfielder, currently at Al-Ettifaq, was once urged to stay by Magpies fans before Liverpool signed him for $33M following Newcastle's relegation in 2016.
He proved pivotal in Liverpool's subsequent success as the Reds claimed both the Premier League and Champions League – they type of silverware Isak dreams of capturing himself. Wijnaldum clearly harboured zero regrets about joining Jürgen Klopp's side, yet remained thankful for Newcastle's part in his career and explained he never pushed to leave the club.
In 2017, ahead of his return to St. James' Park, Wijnaldum told the Liverpool Echo: "I remember my last game for Newcastle in the pre-season when their fans were singing that they wanted me to stay.
"But when the opportunity came to play for a great club like Liverpool with such a great history I had to take it. I hope they understand why I made that choice to go to Liverpool.
"When the previous season at Newcastle ended, I said publicly that I wouldn't force a move. When Liverpool came in for me I made up my mind that I wanted to come here, but I wasn't going to force it because I appreciated what Newcastle and their fans did for me."
He added: "It's always a special game when you play against your previous club. It was only one year at Newcastle but that time there meant a lot to me.
"I met some great people who helped me to play good games in the Premier League and it was because of them I got the move to Liverpool."
Despite expressing fondness for his year-long stint on Tyneside and denying any push for a transfer (unlike Isak), the 34-year-old was criticised by Newcastle fans for lacking commitment to the club.
In his first match back at Newcastle, Wijnaldum was not popular with the home crowd, who jeered him in subsequent matches between the two clubs.
Wijnaldum clocked up 237 appearances for Liverpool, scoring 22 goals, including a memorable double against Barcelona in the second leg of the 2018/19 Champions League semi-final, propelling Liverpool to a 4-3 aggregate win.
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