Newcastle United manager Eddie Howe admitted he was unaware of the future of a possible transfer for Alexander Isak, following the club chairman Yasir Al-Rumayyan’s visit to Monday’s match against Liverpool.
Newcastle, despite playing with ten men after Anthony Gordon’s sending-off in the first half, fought to come back from 2-0 down at St James’ Park, but ultimately lost the match due to a late goal from Liverpool’s young player, Rio Ngumoha.
Isak was not part of Newcastle’s squad, as he continues to push for a transfer. Liverpool had already seen a £110 million bid for the striker rejected earlier this month.
When asked if Al-Rumayyan had spoken with Isak, Howe replied: “I have no knowledge of that, but I haven’t been involved in conversations about this for a long time. I’ve been preparing the team, dedicating all my energy to the players who want to play for Newcastle. I think that’s where I best employ my energy”.
When asked if Al-Rumayyan’s presence on Monday was related to Isak, Howe said: “I don’t know why he’s here, in the sense that the main reason is obviously to see the team, support the team and show his presence, which is very appreciated from my perspective and very loved by everyone when he’s here and connects with the fans.” “But yes, you’re right, he’s the owner. He’s the most important person when it comes to directing the decisions we make. But as I said, I’m not participating in any conversation that has taken place today, so I have no idea where that’s going.” Howe added: “For our part, we want clarity, we want to move forward. We want the narrative to change because we are at the beginning of the season, we are in action and we have to get results and we have to try to focus on what we can control.” “We’ve put in two really good performances. We’ve ended up with a point. That’s tough for us and especially at this moment when you’re looking for positives to hold onto, but we fought and now we go to Leeds.”“I am not participating in the conversations that are taking place, so I have no idea how the situation is”.
Eddie Howe
