Alexander Isak will forever be remembered for taking the ‘nuclear option’ to instigate a move away from Newcastle, Ian Ladyman tells the latest episode of Whistleblowers.
The Daily Mail Football Editor was joined by Merseyside reporter Lewis Steele to debate the rights and wrongs of Isak’s decision to effectively go on strike to force through a move to Liverpool.
After refusing to join the Newcastle squad for their preseason tour of Asia, Liverpool saw an £110million offer knocked back for the Swedish forward.
The Reds announced they would not bid again without ‘encouragement’ from the Magpies, which pushed Isak’s camp into announcing that the forward has no intention of ever representing Newcastle again.
It remains to be seen whether Isak’s decision has softened Newcastle’s stance, with the club still publicly demanding £150m to sell their star striker.
You can listen to the latest episode of Whistleblowers by clicking the player below or here
‘Football fans will frame anything in a way that suits them,’ Ladyman argued.
‘The Newcastle fans will frame it as the behaviour of a traitor; Liverpool fans will say it’s a player desperate for a new challenge.
‘I always felt that if Isak wanted this move, he was going to have to press the nuclear button.
‘He’s pressed it in a big way now – how it shakes down, I don’t know. I imagine he’ll end up at Liverpool.
Alexander Isak will forever be remembered for taking the ‘nuclear option’ to instigate a move away from Newcastle, Ian Ladyman has said
Ian Ladyman: ‘Wherever Isak goes, whatever happens at Liverpool and beyond this – this will be part of his story, his legacy.’ Listen here
‘Wherever Isak goes, whatever happens at Liverpool and beyond this – this will be part of his story, his legacy.
‘Once you’ve done something like this, effectively refuse to play for your club, you never shake it off. That tag is with you forever.’
Ian referenced a similar transfer debacle from the 1990s to argue that Isak may live to ‘regret’ his revolt.
He said: ‘Listeners of a certain age may remember the Pierre van Hooijdonk saga at Nottingham Forest in the late nineties.
Lewis Steele leapt to Isak’s defence, arguing the situation has emerged only because Newcastle were ‘in denial’ about the player’s desire to leave
Lewis Steele: ‘Newcastle should have had their options lined up well in advance, rather than scrambling around now.’ Listen here
‘I was covering Forest at the time for the local paper. Forest got promoted into the Premier League, but Van Hooijdonk still went on strike. He wanted to move.
‘I still speak to Pierre occasionally; he’s around my age now. He told me he regrets going on strike.
‘He still thinks his grievances with the board were valid, but the fact he took that nuclear option of withdrawing his labour… he regrets that now.’
Steele leapt to Isak’s defence, arguing the situation has emerged only because Newcastle were ‘in denial’ about the player’s desire to leave.
Reportedly, Isak informed Newcastle last summer that he wished to be sold in this transfer window, reiterating that desire to manager Eddie Howe on the last day of the season.
‘Newcastle have had a year to prepare for this’, Steele said.
‘From what we understand, Isak told Newcastle last summer that he would maybe only do one more season.
‘We’ve seen this situation before, with players like Jack Grealish and Alexis McAllister. They had unwritten agreements that they would be allowed to leave the following year.
‘So, it’s not like Isak just threw this out to Newcastle two weeks ago. They have been living in denial a little bit, they knew he wanted out.
‘They should have had their options lined up well in advance, rather than scrambling around now.’
To listen to full Isak debate and why Liverpool may need a quality defender more than Newcastle’s Swedish dynamo, search for Whistleblowers now, wherever you get your podcasts.
