Liverpool plot Alexander Isak transfer swoop with £85m swap claim - Newcastle United have already responded
Liverpool will reportedly try to get creative in their attempt to sign Alexander Isak from Newcastle this summer.
Isak is a top target for both Liverpool and Arsenal this summer while Barcelona have also entered the race for his signature. Claims from Spain of an £83million ‘verbal agreement’ to sell Isak to a Champions League club should Newcastle miss out on Europe’s elite club competition have been played down by sources on Tyneside with Newcastle firm in their stance of wanting to keep hold of the Swedish striker.
Isak has scored 54 goals in 97 appearances for Newcastle since his £63million club-record arrival from Real Sociedad in 2022. His 19 goals so far this season have made him one of Europe’s most sought-after strikers heading into the summer transfer window.
But with Isak under contract at Newcastle until June 2028 and the club not in a position where they need to sell top players, the ball is very much in The Magpies’ court. Newcastle have previously valued Isak at £150million, which would make him one of the most expensive players of all time if sold.
Liverpool will try to tempt Newcastle United with transfer deal
With both Liverpool and Arsenal are unlikely to be able to meet Newcastle’s valuation of Isak, they may have to find more creative ways to tempt The Magpies into a sale. One way, according to Football Insider, is a player-plus-cash swap deal that Liverpool will look to explore.
It is claimed Liverpool will offer Uruguayan striker Darwin Nunez in a part-exchange bid for Isak this summer. Both players arrived in the Premier League in the 2022 summer transfer window with Nunez joining from Benfica for a deal totalling £85million including add-ons.
Despite costing over £20million more than Isak, Nunez’s impact in England has not been as significant. Nunez has made 130 appearances for Liverpool in the past three seasons, scoring 39 goals - only four of which have been in the Premier League this season.
While Newcastle were previously credited with an interest in Nunez prior to his move to Liverpool, The Gazette understands that it’s not a deal the club would be interested in pursuing further given Isak’s importance to Eddie Howe’s side.
Newcastle United plan to keep Alexander Isak
Howe has stressed his and Newcastle’s intention to keep hold of Isak beyond the summer transfer window.
He said just last week: “We have to try and keep our best players. I think that’s crucial to our short-term success and our long-term success, so sitting here as the manager of the football club I’d be saying we need to keep the group together and we need to add the other way.
"We haven't added [to the first team] in a long time in various transfer windows, for the reasons we've all discussed. But we need to move the team forward and we can't lose our best players.”
Newcastle are set to engage in new contract talks with Isak following the conclusion of the 2024-25 season.