Newcastle United manager Eddie Howe has stated that his players are getting along well despite the speculation surrounding the future of Alexander Isak, Afrosport reports.
The Swedish striker of Eritrean heritage has requested he wants to leave the club after he was left out of their pre-season tour of Asia and has been heavily linked with a move to Premier League champions Liverpool.
The Magpies have played two pre-season games against Celtic and Arsenal without Isak, losing both 4-0 and 3-2, the latter coming in Singapore on Sunday.
Howe admitted that the Newcastle players are missing the 25-year-old’s impact, but seems confident in the squad managing the situation well.
“You don’t get a chance when you come on to these tours to think of anything other than training, the next game, the level is so high that even in these games we have to be very well prepared,” he said after the loss against Arsenal.
“We have to try and be at our best. So naturally, I think we’re going to miss a player of Alex’s quality, and the group are going to feel that. There’s no denying that.
“And I can’t sit here and claim that they [the players] won’t. But they’re a very professional group of players and they’re doing brilliantly as far as I can see in terms of managing the situation.”
Unseen: Singapore 2025 📸
Next stop, South Korea! 🇰🇷
— Newcastle United (@NUFC) July 28, 2025
Isak bagged 23 league goals last season, finishing second behind Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah in the top scorer charts, while he has scored 62 goals in 109 competitive outings since he joined from Real Sociedad in 2022.
Newcastle will next be in action against the K-League XI in Suwon, South Korea, on Wednesday.
