There was some spectacular pettiness from Newcastle United boss Eddie Howe during his press conference on Friday as he referred to Liverpool as “the other club”.
There is bad blood between Liverpool and Newcastle after the Premier League champions signed Alexander Isak for £135million after a lengthy summer pursuit.
Newcastle supporters are unhappy with how Isak conducted himself after he didn’t feature at all in pre-season and then the club’s first three games of 2025/26.
The Swedish striker went from hero to villain after going to extreme lengths to earn a move to Anfield, while Liverpool have also been criticised for tapping up the player.
Isak has burned his Newcastle bridges and speaking ahead of this weekend’s game against Wolves, Howe discussed his relationship with the 25-year-old, which changed “when the other club” (Liverpool) “changed his thought process”.
“Alex and I always enjoyed a great relationship,” the Magpies head coach said. “I loved working with him and I hope he loved working with us.
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“It was mutually beneficial. We helped him become the player that he in part is today. And he helped us as a team achieve some unbelievable milestones. He was part of a very successful team.
“But to give you a bit more on that, the moment he went on strike our relationship did change. I think that was probably a turning point in our relationship. Communication became difficult from that point onwards. I won’t go into any more detail than that.
“I would say Alex was very much part of that (our success) and loved his time here, so I don’t think that was the issue (that he was not happy here). I think the issue for him was more when the other club came there, that then changed his thought process.”
Asked if he felt relieved that he wouldn’t have to reintegrate Isak after he made his intentions clear, Howe replied: “I didn’t look at it that way. I didn’t know which way it was going to fall (staying or leaving) right until the end.
“All I’ll ever do is adjust to what the future looks like and that future now is without Alex. We were able to bring two strikers in, who we feel can really help us and my focus is purely on them.
“I don’t know if shocked (that he went on strike) is the right word because I’ve seen lots of similar situations before, but it was about dealing with the situation as best I could for Newcastle.”
Nick Woltemade and Yoane Wissa have been tasked with filling the void left by Isak, who scored 23 goals in 34 Premier League games last term.
Wissa is unavailable for the visit of Wolveswhile Woltemade is in line to make his full debut.
“The challenge for Nick is to adjust to the Premier League, to us, to how we play. I think there’s a lot for him to take in,” Howe added.
“But I say this to any new player coming into the group, we just want them to be themselves, commit to what we ask them to do, give everything in every moment and the process then will naturally occur. We think he has the qualities to become a very, very good player for us in the short and long term.
“I really like what I’ve seen initially, but I don’t want to put too much pressure on him – I think there’s enough on him already. We just want him to be, as I say, himself and just commit to what we ask him to do.”
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