Newcastle United manager Eddie Howe has put his defenders on high alert as they prepare to face a player he wished he had on his team this season.
Liverpool will arrive at St James’ Park on Monday night hoping to sign the “Magpies” star striker, Alexander Isak, before the summer transfer window closes. However, they will have to face Hugo Ekitike, who could have taken his place.
The 23-year-old French forward, who completed a £69 million (92.8 million dollar) transfer to Liverpool from Eintracht Frankfurt last month, was a long-term target for Newcastle. After missing out on signing him, they will now have to deal with him as they seek their first win in the new Premier League season.
There is no doubt that I like Hugo very much and I have done so for several years. He has very good qualities and he showed it in his first Premier League match. He had a very good debut against Bournemouth.
Eddie Howe
Howe commented: “He has very good movement, he’s intelligent, good in the air, scores goals, scores with both feet. Our job will be to keep him in check. He will be a threat this year.”Hugo Ekitike ha marcado en sus dos primeras apariciones con el Liverpool esta temporada.Ekitike has already proven his worth in English football, scoring in the defeat in the Community Shield against Crystal Palace and in the 4-2 league victory over Bournemouth.
It was one of the offensive targets identified by the “Magpies” this summer, as they seek a replacement for Callum Wilson and try to protect themselves in case Isak is sold. They have also missed out on João Pedro, who went to Chelsea, and Benjamin Sesko, who signed for Manchester United.
Howe has managed to sign Anthony Elanga, Aaron Ramsdale, Malick Thiaw and Jacob Ramsey and is currently trying to sign Yoane Wissa from Brentford and, with less chance of success, Jorgen Strand Larsen from Wolves, but admits he will be happy for the transfer market to end.
Howe stated: “I will be happy when it’s over, happy if we get what we want.”
Whenever you go through a market, there are ups and downs. It seems there have been quite a few ups and downs in this one, but also quite a few positive aspects.
The players we have signed are very good players who will contribute a lot to the team, a lot in terms of skill, athleticism, and fresh energy that I have talked about before.
There are great positives for us. Of course, there is a big challenging situation that is not resolved. On that side, I can’t wait for the market to end because we can refocus on the football matches.”
