Gary Neville has namechecked Manchester United when discussing where Alexander Isak could move next, though Jamie Carragher has given a more realistic prediction over the Newcastle United star’s future.
Isak wrote himself into Newcastle folklore by scoring at Wembley to help the club beat Liverpool 2-1 and lift the League Cup earlier this month. Newcastle went into the match as underdogs but brilliantly managed to keep Liverpool’s star man Mohamed Salah quiet on their way to winning a first domestic trophy in 70 years.
Isak is regarded by some as the best striker in the Premier League and as one of the best goalscorers in the world, and Newcastle’s triumph only added to his reputation.
Newcastle are in contract talks with Isak as they look to prevent the Swede from leaving for another major club this summer.
It is understood that Isak’s future will largely depend on whether Newcastle qualify for next season’s Champions League. They currently sit in sixth spot, two points off the top four with a game in hand.
On the It’s Called Soccer podcast, pundits Neville and Carragher suggested where Isak might go if Newcastle fail to meet his demands and ambitions.
Neville has suggested Man Utd could incredibly enter the frame, despite their poor season and their own lack of UCL football. Carragher, though, believes Arsenal and Liverpool are at the front of the queue for the lethal 25-year-old.
When Carragher was asked which club Isak may be looking to join, Neville interrupted by saying: “The reality is Newcastle are a great football club and we didn’t see that anymore [than] as we did on Sunday [the final].
“But they [Newcastle’s top stars] will want to play for the Real Madrids, Liverpools, Manchester Uniteds and Bayern Munichs of this world, it’s just natural that these players will want to play at those clubs at some point, if they can.”
Carragher replied: “I think the only two options [for Isak] at the moment would be Arsenal and Liverpool as they’re both sort of crying out for a striker.
“I just look at how long he’s got left on his deal and the ball is in Newcastle’s court, it’s not really in Isak’s. I think once you get [down] to two years [on the contract], it’s almost a 50-50, no-one wants to get down to 12 months.
“Newcastle could keep him for another year and say, ‘We’ll see you then as we’re going to get the same sort of money‘. I don’t think Newcastle gain anything by selling him now, unless that they had to.
“And that is why, if Newcastle get into the Champions League, there’s no way Isak is leaving the club. I think the club will say, ‘No, do another 12 months and in a year’s time we can make a few quid and you can move on’.”
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Alexander Isak commands huge price tag
TEAMtalk understands Newcastle will need to be offered £120million (€144m / $155m) before they even consider selling Isak.
Mikel Arteta has identified Isak as his dream striker target at Arsenal, while TEAMtalk has previously revealed that the player would be open to joining Liverpool if they managed to strike an agreement for him.
While Neville would love to see Isak becomes the new No 9 at Old Trafford, it is very hard to see such a move going ahead.
As mentioned previously, the classy forward is demanding regular Champions League football, and that is not guaranteed at Man Utd currently.
Plus, Man Utd are working on a tight budget and cannot afford to spend it all on one statement signing, such as Isak.
Man Utd transfers: Sancho latest; double Serie A move
Meanwhile, David Ornstein has revealed the fee Chelsea will have to pay Man Utd if they refuse to sign Jadon Sancho permanently.
That fee is set at £5m, with Chelsea debating what to do with the winger amid his lack of goal contributions.
Separate reports claim United are interested in landing top Serie A duo Victor Osimhen and Ademola Lookman.
United could reduce the price needed to sign Osimhen by sending Joshua Zirkzee to Napoli in a player-plus-cash deal.