One Newcastle United star has been left gutted after what he describes as a personal “setback” in the 3-2 Premier League loss to Liverpool.
Howe addresses Isak’s Newcastle future after Liverpool defeat
Much of the focus around Newcastle’s meeting with Liverpool on Monday evening centred around the future of Alexander Isak, with the forward once again absent from Eddie Howe’s side.
The Reds have been looking to sign the striker this summer and have even had a £110m bid turned down by those at St James’ Park, with Isak looking to force a move to Anfield.
On the pitch, Newcastle battled back from Anthony Gordon’s red card and were 2-0 down to Arne Slot’s side, but goals from Bruno Guimaraes and Will Osula looked to have won the Magpies a point before 16-year-old Rio Ngumoha came off the bench to snatch victory deep into stoppage time.
Asked about Isak after the defeat, Howe admitted he and his team need “clarity” regarding the striker’s future.
“I’ve not been party to talks on this for a long time now. I’ve been preparing the team and giving all my energy to the players that want to play for Newcastle. I think that is where my energy is best put at the moment. We want clarity, we want to move forward, we want the narrative to change because we’re in the start of the season now.
“We’re into the action and we’ve got to get results, and we’ve got to try to focus on what we can control. We’ve given two really, really good performances, we’ve ended up with one point. That’s tough for us to take, especially in this moment where you’re looking for positives to cling to. But we battle through and we now go on to Leeds.”
Newcastle star Gordon apologises to Van Dijk
Meanwhile, taking to social media platform Instagram, Gordon apologised to his Newcastle team-mates and Virgil van Dijk for the challenge which cost him a red card in Monday night’s defeat.
Sent off after a VAR review shortly before half-time, Gordon said:
“I want to sincerely apologise to my team-mates and the fans. My intentions were pure. I was just trying to create energy in the game and I mistimed the tackle.
“I also want to apologise to Virgil, I would never intend to tackle somebody like this on purpose. We spoke after and he knows that.
“More importantly, I’m so proud of the time I spent on the pitch and how we played tonight. The atmosphere from you all is what makes SJP so special. I love everything we stand for as a club and no more than right now.
“I’ll be back and better, the same as every other setback I’ve ever faced. See you soon.”
Starting in a central role with Isak still out, Gordon will now miss games against Leeds United, Wolves and Bournemouth, returning to Premier League action against Arsenal at the end of September.
