With Liverpool agitating – This Alexander Isak contract looks like the right outcome | OneFootball

I wrote something that was published on The Mag the other day about Alexander Isak, maybe I’d had a subconscious premonition of this Liverpool attempt to unsettle the striker.

As you no doubt will know, Tuesday saw Liverpool feeding the media with the knowledge that they would like to sign the Sweden international.

Not exactly a revelation.

However, clear evidence that Liverpool are recognising that they desperately need to buy a new first choice striker this summer and as we already knew, Alexander Isak would be their dream signing.

The fact that this Liverpool interaction with the media included a valuation of £120m was laughable, with it long being reported that Newcastle United have a £150m+ valuation, IF they ever did sell him.

In that previous article, I was talking about the Alexander Isak contract situation.

With this agitating from Liverpool yesterday, it just tells me even more that my suggested Alexander Isak contract outcome would be the right one for sure.

Alexander Isak has three years left on his Newcastle United contract, up to 30 June 2028.

Heading into this summer, it was widely reported that the club (Newcastle United) would open up talks with the striker and his representatives, to try and agree a new extended and enhanced deal.

No panic yet of course, Alexander Isak still has those three seasons left on his current contract. However, this looks a key moment, a massive important moment, that Newcastle United have to get right.

Isak needs to be rewarded for his contribution to what has happened at NUFC. Yes, we all know he is already paid a lot of money, but in football terms he needs to be now paid a lot more. He needs to be shown that he is valued by the club. A recognition that pretty much any other club would be desperate to sign him if he became available, not just Liverpool.

So we have agreed that the time has come for Alexander Isak to be paid a lot more money.

You then have the other side of the equation.

At the same time, I think it is clear that Newcastle United need to get Isak on a longer contract to help protect their position. Not that I think Alexander Isak is the type to do the dirty on his club but the simple fact is that for clubs trying to buy him, if say it was allowed to go down to two years left on his contract or less, the selling club (NUFC) is in a far weaker bargaining position when it comes to a potential transfer fee.

So we have that typical contract extension scenario, the player gets more money, in return the club gets more security on their asset via an extended number of years on the contract.

I think though with this Alexander Isak situation, a third element is needed.

Regardless of this Liverpool interest/agitating, in the real world we have to accept that we have had three years of this brilliant striker playing for us AND I think it is more than fair that we hope and expect that will become four seasons with this upcoming 2025/26 campaign.

However, I certainly wouldn’t begrudge Alexander Isak if he wanted to have the freedom to decide for himself what he wants to do when we get to summer 2026.

It isn’t a case of I want him to leave or even believe that will be the case, however, I think it would be fair and balanced if after four years, such a brilliant player can decide for himself.

If Newcastle United continue to build on the trophy and Champions League qualification of 2024/25, progress further next season, then why would Alexander Isak want to leave?

However, if things stall, or go backwards, the fact is that Alexander Isak will be set to turn 27 in September 2026, so you couldn’t blame him for considering his options, as he enters such a key time of his career.

The compromise and clincher for this new Newcastle United contract to be agreed, is that for me it will also include a release clause figure for summer 2026, where if Alexander Isak did want to leave, a figure was already in place that would allow things to happen without a very messy potential saga. As for what that figure would be, that’s for Alexander Isak and Newcastle United to agree.

Put that release clause figure in a new extended Alexander Isak contract BUT only make it effective as from summer 2026.

Get that signed and make it clear that in the meantime Alexander Isak isn’t for sale at any price, until that agreed release clause figure becomes effective in a year’s time. Ideally, once a new contract agreed, then get Isak himself as part of the announcement, to say that there is no chance of him leaving this summer, that 100 per cent he will be playing for Newcastle United throughout the 2025/26 season.

What it would mean is that if you had any clubs trying it on this summer (such as Liverpool…), especially if trying to put in daft low bids (£120m for instance…), Newcastle United would just need to refer them to that new contract, the release clause figure that will become effective in summer 2026 and that zero chance of Alexander Isak leaving before then.

Don’t bother us until next summer AND even then, only come back if you are going to offer that release clause figure that would be in the new contract agreed by Newcastle and Isak. It would then be up to Alexander Isak himself next summer, as to whether or not he wanted to make a move to any interested club.

It is the norm on the continent for most top players to have a release clause figure, as it makes things a lot less messy.

I think keeping Alexander Isak has always depended on Newcastle United progressing, showing ambition, convincing him that he can achieve his ambitions here. So nothing would really be changing with a new contract along these kind of lines detailed above, apart from the fact that the striker would get the higher wages he deserves and Newcastle United would get additional protection to ensure that if Isak ever leaves (summer 2026 or later), they will get the right level of transfer fee to allow substantial reinvestment in the squad.