‘Forfeit that money’ – Le Tissier reacts to Alexander Isak’s explosive statement
Alexander Isak has been told to forfeit some of his Newcastle wages to force a move to Liverpool after he released a shock statement on his situation at St James’ Park.
That is the view of Premier League legend Matt Le Tissier, who exclusively told Football Insider that he believes Isak should hand in a transfer request as soon as possible, despite likely not wanting to due to financial concerns.
Isak released a shock statement about his Newcastle situation on Tuesday (19 August) evening, insisting that promises had been “broken” by the club and they had “lost” his trust.
The Swede is refusing to feature for the club until he is allowed to join Liverpool, but that move looks no closer to materialising with the new campaign now underway.
Liverpool’s first bid for Isak was rejected by Newcastle, who were unwilling to let him go for a package totalling £120million, but he still wants away, and Football Insider revealed on Friday (15 August) that Isak looks increasingly likely to move to Anfield soon as long he keeps refusing to play.
Alexander Isak should put in a transfer request to force Liverpool move
This article contains exclusive comment from former Southampton and England striker Matt Le Tissier.
His transfer saga has waged on for over to a month now, but a breakthrough has still not been found with the Reds yet to send a second, more suitable offer to Newcastle for the 25-year-old’s services.
The Magpies have officially responded to Isak’s statement by insisting that he “remains under contract” and that “no commitment has ever been made by a club official” allowing him to depart the club this summer.
Speaking to Football Insider exclusively, Le Tissier urged Isak to hand in a transfer request to Newcastle, in doing so forfeiting some of his wages, in order to get closer to a move to Anfield as the end of the window edges ever nearer.
He said: “So, Alexander Isak has finally spoken, and apparently ‘promises’ were made and they were broken. Well, I think in this day and age, I don’t think you need to rely on promises. Things need to be written down on paper.
“Proof needs to be there, and it would have been interesting for him to actually come out and say which promises have been broken, what had he been promised? And, if he feels so strongly, why hasn’t he put in a transfer request?
“I’ll tell you why he hasn’t put in a transfer request, because when you do that, you start forfeiting a lot of money from your contract that you might be owed by the club that is employing you.
“I think if I was in Isak’s position and wanted to desperately get away, I think I’d probably put a transfer request in and forfeit that money, because, let’s be honest, you’re not really earning it, are you?
“I’m not quite sure. If he’s going to come out with a statement that says: ‘promises were made,’ tell us what those promises were, let’s check it out from the other side, and we can all make a decision from then on.”
Alexander Isak needs Newcastle reconciliation with exit unlikely
Isak’s saga is clearly not going to come to an end anytime soon, with both parties at a standoff and claiming that they are in the right.
The Swede has understandably been untouchable in the transfer market as far as Newcastle are concerned this summer, but the situation seems completely beyond repair now that he has gone public with his issues.
| Appearances | Goals | Assists |
| 109 | 62 | 11 |
Any bid that reaches £150m will surely now be accepted due to the circumstances, yet Liverpool have shown no signs of returning with another offer, and may not be set to do so after recently signing Hugo Ekitike.
Isak has his heart set on a move to Anfield, but if he is not going to back down and continue to refuse to play for Newcastle going forward into a huge season for him ahead of potentially going to his first World Cup with Sweden, then he may need to simply swallow his pride and return to Eddie Howe’s squad soon.