Newcastle plan backfired spectacularly as Alexander Isak forces Liverpool transfer decision

If ever there was a guide on how not to conduct your business, than Newcastle's handling of transfer this summer would surely be lesson one.

Not too long ago, the Magpies held ambitious thoughts of Alexander Isak and Hugo Ekitike playing alongside each other next season. A bid duly went in for the latter, only to be knocked back by Eintracht Frankfurt.

Shortly after that, Liverpool moved quickly to secure Ekitike in a deal that could end up being only slightly more than Newcastle bid in the first place. The dream of Isak and Ekitike playing alongside each other is still possible, although only at Anfield now.

Whatever the motivation was behind tabling that bid for Ekitike - whether Newcastle genuinely held ambitions of him playing with Isak, or if it was a ploy to ward Liverpool off their star striker - it now looks to have blown up in their faces.

While many Newcastle fans might have thought they got the better end of the stick by keeping Isak, the Swede looks a lot more likely to be pulling on a red shirt than a black and white one this season.

The latest reports suggest that he is now refusing to ever play for Newcastle again, having supposedly made it clear to the club that he would not stay beyond last season.

It's the latest twist in what is increasingly looking like a transfer disasterclass from Newcastle - quite the opposite of what Liverpool has managed to achieve this summer.

Even after an outlay of almost $400 million this summer, the Reds are still well within their own PSR means, and could still bring in money through the sales of Kostas Tsimikas and Harvey Elliott, having already offloaded Luis Diaz and Darwin Nunez among others. There is every possibility then of Isak landing at Anfield, and there is the added advantage of knowing he wants to leave.

That bid for Ekitike could not have backfired more spectacularly for Newcastle. Not too long ago, Howe might have been dreaming of having one of the most feared frontlines in the Premier League. Now he facing the prospect of starting the new season without a single senior striker to pick from, even if Isak stays.

Ekitike's arrival at Liverpool was greeted by some rival fans with derision. In their eyes, the Reds had to go with their tail tucked between their legs to their plan B after being palmed off by Newcastle.

Now we're starting to see the effect the pull of the Premier League champions has truly had. The best case scenario for Newcastle is it holds onto a player that doesn't want to be there, and chances are he wouldn't be sticking around for long thereafter.

Meanwhile, Liverpool's worst case scenario is it goes into the new season with just the one new striker, having already transformed itself with a host of major signings. It's easy to see now who the real winners are going to be in this saga.

An original version of this article was first published on July 24.

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