Embarrassing from Liverpool fanboy John Aldridge on Alexander Isak and Newcastle United | OneFootball

This is simply embarrassing from John Aldridge on the Alexander Isak situation, with Liverpool and Newcastle United.

We have seen many journalists and Liverpool figures willing to say anything and everything to try and make out that Newcastle United are somehow the ones to blame in all of this mess.

However, Liverpool fanboy John Aldridge is right up there with the ‘best’ of them.

You have to cringe at his lack of integrity, willing to say anything in supplication to his Liverpool supporting audience.

You would almost think John Aldridge was a Liverpool fan and former Liverpool player…

John Aldridge talking to the Liverpool Echo about the Alexander Isak, Newcastle United and Liverpool situation – 19 August 2025:

‘I find Alexander Isak transfer stance incredible – what is being asked of Liverpool is ludicrous

Liverpool have been in a similar position before where their star striker has wanted to leave.

No-one was more gutted than when Kevin Keegan left in 1977 and more recently we’ve had players who have rocked the boat in an attempt to get out of Anfield.

Luis Suarez, Javier Mascherano and Fernando Torres have all caused mischief to get their move, so Liverpool fans know all too well what their Newcastle counterparts are experiencing at the moment where Isak is concerned.

No player has ever been bigger than the club though when it comes to Liverpool and they have always managed to thrive after their big stars have left. It’s been a case of: ‘Thanks for your service, now close the door behind you on the way out’.

But look, the prospect of a £150m bid is ludicrous. This is not Lionel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo. Isak is a top striker but that sort of fee for a player who clearly wants to leave and has even gone on strike to get it over the line I find incredible.

It’s a situation that has not been handled well up at Newcastle but even their Saudi Arabian owners must realise it might be for the best to move him on and reinvest that money.’

John Aldridge raises the example of Kevin Keegan, wanting to compare it to the Alexander Isak situation now.

Well, interesting he should mention that Kevin Keegan sale by Liverpool back in 1977…

Back in 1977, 48 years ago, Liverpool sold Kevin Keegan to Hamburg for £500,000.

Forty-eight years ago £500,000 was an extraordinary amount and smashed the British transfer record, whilst it was almost twice as much as any German club had ever paid for a player.

Liverpool banked that £500,000 and (according to all Liverpool fans I have ever heard talk/write about it) then spent £440,000 of that half a million on an even better player in Kenny Dalglish, with money left over.

Fast forward to August 2025 and John Aldridge thinks it is ludicrous that Newcastle United won’t accept £110m for Alexander Isak. This despite Liverpool having already agreed a £116m deal this summer for Florian Wirtz who is totally unproven in the Premier League, unlike Alexander Isak who has three years of excellence and goalscoring in the Premier League already. Also, two years ago a German club paid £100m for a 30 year old striker, when Harry Kane went to Bayern Munich. Compare that to the Kevin Keegan era as well, that Hamburg deal.

Liverpool fanboy John Aldridge of course also carefully decides not to mention the most obvious comparison to this Alexander Isak situation between Liverpool and Newcastle United. Which is the situation that developed between Liverpool and Barcelona eight years ago regarding Philippe Coutinho.

Back in August 2017, Liverpool rejected a £72m bid from Barcelona for Philippe Coutinho, further bids were made by Barcelona that summer up to something similar to the paltry £110m that Liverpool have offered now for Alexander Isak. However, that was EIGHT years ago.

Liverpool kept on refusing to sell in summer 2017 and were demanding more than £180m for Philippe Coutinho. The striker even put in a written transfer request, meaning that if/when a move did happen, the player was giving up a serious amount of money he would otherwise have been entitled to if moving.

Liverpool refused to accept what was a massive amount of money due to sheer greed and forced the player to stay at the club in summer 2017. Barcelona didn’t give up though and on 6 January 2018, Phillipe Coutinho moved to Barca in an eventual £142m deal.

It is beyond belief that John Aldridge thinks it is ‘ludicrous’ how Newcastle United are acting, refusing to sell to his beloved Liverpool for only £110m. You won’t get a modern day Kenny Dalglish plus change left over, if taking that ludicrous offer.

Put it this way, is somebody was offering £110m to Manchester City for Erling Haaland would anybody say they were being ‘ludicrous’ for refusing to sell???

Liverpool have behaved disgracefully in all of this, intent on causing problems at another club and feeding all kinds of nonsense to the media, then putting in a ridiculous low offer, some £40m less than Newcastle’s valuation, IF they were willing to sell.

It is a bit like selling your house, when the housing market is booming, why would you sell your house at a price which would then mean you could only afford an inferior replacement?

Maybe the best line of all though from John Aldridge is where he declares: ‘…that sort of fee for a player who clearly wants to leave and has even gone on strike to get it over the line I find incredible.’

So what Aldridge is basically saying, is that because Alexander Isak wants to leave and has gone on strike to try and help Liverpool get the price down, that Newcastle United should cave in and reward Liverpool and Isak by dropping their valuation by £40m and sell the striker on the cheap.

Hmmm, I think that in the real world we can safely say that this is not happening, apart from in the dreams of Liverpool fanboys such as John Aldridge.