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Newcastle United midfielder Joelinton has become the latest Magpies player to speak out on Alexander Isak's move to Liverpool this summer, which went through on transfer deadline day.
Isak forced the issue and was training alone for several weeks before the deal was done, with stars such as Bruno Guimaraes and Dan Burn having made clear they are keen to move on from the 25-year-old. Liverpool paid a British record fee of around $169 million (£125 million), with Eddie Howe's men eventually relenting on their not-for-sale stance.
Now, Joelinton has aimed a dig at Isak, saying: "We are professional," when asked about how he felt about the move. "We come back to the club [after summer] to do our best.
"We had a good pre-season. We know the noise around, but we are professional. We kept the focus and do what we have to do on the pitch and everyone has done well."
Despite Isak causing disruption and creating unwanted "noise" by going on strike before his exit was permitted, Joelinton went on to say that he and the rest of the Newcastle players hope the ex-teammate does well at Anfield.
"We wish Alex the best," Joelinton insisted. "He did well for the club and now he's gone and we have to focus on the players that are here in the squad and keep going."
Without the Swede, Newcastle has struggled to score goals this season. Nick Woltemade and Yoane Wissa have both moved to the North East but the former is young and might take time to adjust to the Premier League, while the latter has been injured.
"We always create a lot of chances and always score goals with different players," Joelinton continued, via the Shields Gazzette.
"We didn't start the season in the way we wanted, but I hope we can get the confidence from the [Bradford City] game and keep evolving and create more chances for our front players.
"Every time we step on the pitch, we want to play our best football. Sometimes it doesn’t happen but that's normal.
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"We have a strong squad this year. Everyone's going to be important, so it's a push for everybody to do their best every day at the training ground and in the games. We hope we can push even harder this year."
Liverpool has already been to Newcastle this season, beating the St James' Park side thanks to Rio Ngumoha's late winner. That was a few days before Isak's transfer was agreed.
"I think especially when you play for a club like Liverpool, you’ve got to compete on all fronts," Isak said this week after scoring his first goal for the Reds. "That’s the main goal: to be competitive in all competitions, going out to every game wanting to win."
Liverpool.com says: Isak forced the issue and got his way in the end. It might take a few more weeks for him to be fully up to speed, but the signs so far have been good. He's looked pretty sharp and is already off the mark when it comes to scoring goals.
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