1 week ago
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Liverpool has taken the first tentative steps toward a blockbuster transfer for Alexander Isak and Jamie Carragher has already told the player that he would fully support a big-money move.
A bid for Isak is yet to be tabled, with Liverpool well aware of Newcastle's public stance that he is not for sale. However, the Reds have made contact, with Richard Hughes indicating to his opposite numbers at St James' Park that he would be interested in doing business at the $161 million (£120 million) mark.
This would be a definitive new British record, ending the debate over whether Florian Wirtz claimed that crown when he moved to Anfield earlier in the summer. It would also be a massive statement of intent, indicating the plan to build a dynasty under Arne Slot.
An awful lot still needs to happen before we reach that point, however. Newcastle, for its part, is yet to make any indication that is has abandoned its not-for-sale position.
Plenty feel as though its pursuit of Hugo Ekitike has given the game away in that regard. But the North-East club has been insisting through media sources that it intends to partner the two strikers together — a stance which would require an embarrassing climbdown if the Swede were to leave this summer.
A further twist is that Liverpool may yet also enter the race for Ekitike, particularly if it gets no encouragement over Isak. So a situation may emerge whereby the Reds effectively tell Newcastle to pick between its star player and its top target.
But even with Liverpool holding that leverage, the Saudi-backed side may feel as though it has no reason to part ways with its elite striker. It has just got back into the Champions League, FFP fears have eased compared to previous years, and selling its star man may genuinely be considered a non-starter at any price point for a club with ambitions of cracking the big-time.
However, Liverpool must consider that there is a sliver of an opportunity, or else it would not have made the approach. Carragher, for his part, would be a vocal backer of the move.
"Alexander, I absolutely adore you," Carragher told Isak directly after the Swede scored in a 2-0 win over Manchester United at Old Trafford. "I think you're a fantastic player and if I had £150 million, I'd pay it to have you at any club."
Liverpool legend Carragher cannot have known then that it would be his former club weighing up that very proposition come the summer. The Reds have signalled their interest at a slightly lower price point, but if Newcastle indicates a willingness to talk, then negotiations are to be expected.
And even if the price rose to the dizzying heights mentioned by Carragher, Liverpool might be ending up with a good deal. In a fairly uninspiring striker market, Isak towers above the rest.
The difference to Darwin Nunez, for example, is night and day. The Uruguayan is beloved on Merseyside, but it is frightening to think how much of an upgrade Liverpool would be performing if it could pull off this transfer.
Isak has all of the same off-the-ball strengths, acting as a similarly elite chance magnet. But he also knows exactly how to put them away, demonstrating over multiple seasons that he is an elite finisher at the very top level.
Carragher would clearly advise Liverpool to press ahead. And it seems the club intends to do so if at all possible — but ultimately, it is still the case that this will all come down to Newcastle's stance.
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