Liverpool complete Newcastle United transfer hijack as six-year deal agreed amid Alexander Isak U-turn
Liverpool have agreed a deal to sign Hugo Ekitike from Eintracht Frankfurt after a failed bid from Newcastle United.
A transfer tug of war threatened to unfold between Newcastle and Liverpool after the Premier League champions made their interest in Alexander Isak public last week.
Although no official approach was made for Isak, Newcastle have already made it clear that the striker is not for sale this summer. But the speculation has continued with reports from Saudi Arabia now linking PIF-owned Al-Hilal with a move for the striker.
Instead of pursuing a move for Isak, Liverpool made a swoop for Frankfurt striker Ekitike after Newcastle’s failed bid to sign the 23-year-old. The Magpies had a £69.5million bid rejected by the Bundesliga side last week before Liverpool submitted an offer which has now been accepted.
Liverpool’s Hugo Ekitike price-tag revealed
Liverpool’s deal with Frankfurt for Ekitike is understood to be worth up to £79million. Ekitike scored 22 goals in all competition for Frankfurt last season and now Liverpool have beaten Newcastle and Manchester United to the French forward’s signature.
An initial £69million fee has been agreed with a further £10million in potential add-ons.
Ekitike has agreed a six-year deal at Anfield, marking the third time Newcastle have missed out on the forward.
Hugo Ekitike explains Newcastle United snub
Newcastle pushed hard to sign Ekitike from Stade de Reims back in 2022 and believed a move was close, only for the player and his representatives to stall a deal and allow Paris Saint-Germain to swoop in.
Explaining why he turned down Newcastle back in 2022, Ekitike told UEFA: “I had lots of clubs and Paris' offer arrived. That was that. The next logical step.
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“Paris are the biggest club in France right now, winning everything. They had the best players in the world. How could I say no? I told my brother. I said, 'I want to go there straight away'. That's all I told him.”
But the reality was Ekitike was competing with the likes of Kylian Mbappe, Neymar and Lionel Messi in his only full season in the French capital. As such he rarely got a look in and was limited to just 14 starts, scoring four goals.
He was then frozen out of the squad for his second season, watching Newcastle’s 4-1 win over PSG in the Champions League on television before joining Frankfurt in January 2024.
"Obviously, in terms of longevity, I'm not going to say that my time in Paris was the happiest moment of my life but today, when I look back, I say to myself that maybe it was necessary,” he added. “I've got so many goals. I've got so many things ahead of me that I don't regret breaking my back sometimes. It's all part of my journey and I'm proud of it."
Alexander Isak latest as Eddie Howe confirms U-turn
While Newcastle have tried and failed to sign Ekitike for a third time, they crucially still have Isak at the club with the striker expected to join up with the first-team squad for the Asia tour.
That’s according to Newcastle head coach Eddie Howe, who decided to send the striker home from the friendly match at Celtic on Saturday due to the speculation and managing his minutes after a groin injury. Isak had travelled with the squad to Glasgow but returned to Newcastle rather than Celtic Park.
“Yes, absolutely, yes,” Howe said when asked if he expects Isak to travel with Newcastle to Asia.
“I think it's difficult for me to give 100% clarity on any player [staying]. I'd never sit here and do that because it's football and you never know what could happen. All I can say is that Alex is happy at Newcastle.”