Rejected offer piles pressure on Alexander Isak deal

Liverpool are desperate to sign Alexander Isak. Newcastle United might just be feeling the pressure to sell, too.

It's not a big secret that Liverpool hope to seal a deal for Alexander Isak. That's been known for months now - the Swede is viewed as the ultimate striker signing this summer.

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That doesn't just go for Liverpool, either. Isak is the one for anybody hoping to claim a new no.9. And Newcastle know it.

They reportedly set the price-tag over £150m, making a deal incredibly difficult. Qualifying for the UEFA Champions League means they can quite comfortably stick to that price, too.

But it's also understood that Newcastle won't even necessarily sell at that price. Their stance is more 'Isak is not for sale' as they attempt to keep their star asset.

Now, whether they actually should is another matter.

READ MORE: €50m Liverpool striker deal moves CLOSER

Newcastle fail with bid

The Athletic reports that Newcastle tried and failed to sign Anthony Elanga from Nottingham Forest this week. They put £45m on the table but Forest said no.

And that puts the Magpies in a strange position. They're hoping to capitalise on Champions League qualification to strengthen their squad significantly.

Elanga would have been a part of that but, apparently, Forest didn't even offer a counter price. It seems any deal would need to be for significantly more than £45m.

Which in turn makes it more difficult for Newcastle to get other deals done. They need to comply with Premier League PSR, after all, and nearly fell foul of it in 2024.

Truly upgrading the squad will be difficult, especially if a move for Elanga eats up significantly more PSR room than they intended. But there is a way around it all!

Sell one player for a massive fee and the flexibility is there to do what they want (largely). Isak is the most obvious player to sell, fetching far and away the largest price.

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And the more they fail with bids, the greater the pressure to sell the Swede.