Liverpool transfer domino set to fall as Eddie Howe makes fresh Newcastle admission

Liverpool transfer domino set to fall as Eddie Howe makes fresh Newcastle admission

Liverpool continue to await encouragement from Newcastle United over Alexander Isak as Ben Doak moves closer to joining Bournemouth for £25m

Eddie Howe has been unable to call on his Newcastle United star striker Alexander Isak after he was left unsettled by a transfer bid from Liverpool (Image: John Walton/PA Wire)

The sale of Ben Doak to Bournemouth is expected to be the second in a row of transfer dominoes that could be set to benefit Liverpool later in the window. The £25m departure of the Scotland international has been facilitated by the Cherries to replace Dango Ouattara, whose near £40m, club-record move to Brentford was ratified over the weekend.

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That, in turn, should allow Brentford to allow Newcastle United to finally complete their summer-long pursuit of Yoane Wissa, who has made it clear he sees his future away from the Gtech Community Stadium.

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And if Wissa gets his dream move to Newcastle United, it completes what is said to be stage one of their efforts to restructure their attack following the exit of Callum Wilson and the furore around a certain Alexander Isak, who was subjected to chants of "one greedy b******" from the Magpies' travelling support after Saturday's goalless at Aston Villa.

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It's unlikely Isak heard those chants given he was nowhere to be seen on the day, but once more, Newcastle boss Eddie Howe was subjected to a barrage of questions about his wantaway star striker before and after the game.

"Of course, I've said many times I want him to train and play," Howe said. "I’ve had those conversations with him, but the details of these conversations need to remain private.

"It (training alone) is not something you ever want to see. You want to see him with the squad, you want to see him happy and enjoying his football. He is contracted to us. He is here, so for me, that is an unfortunate situation.’

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"Yes, I believe there is (a way back for Isak). But of course, discussions and talks would need to take place for that to happen. But that’s for another day. Today is Aston Villa and making sure we perform as well as we can."

The reporting from those in the North East has always been consistent around Newcastle's pursuit of Wissa. His potential arrival should not be seen as the club greasing the wheels of Isak's exit but it will at least mean the focus from an operation without a sporting director can turn to securing another frontman to supplement what is already in the ranks.

So far, the Magpies' pursuit of an Isak successor has proven fruitless, having lost out on the likes of Joao Pedro and Liam Delap, to Chelsea, and more recently Benjamin Sesko, whose £73m move to Manchester United saw him make his debut off the bench in Sunday's 1-0 home loss to Arsenal.

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Howe insists re-integration is still a possibility for Isak but how much of that stance is fuelled by a desire to ensure the player's valuation doesn't dramatically drop in the final fortnight of the window only those on the inside of St James' Park will know.

Having tabled an offer of £110m earlier in the month for Isak, Liverpool are playing a waiting game now and are coiled to return to the table if given any encouragement by Newcastle over their No.14, who scored 23 Premier League goals last season.

There has been some sympathy for Howe given the saga has dominated the column inches and driven the lines of questioning in pre and post-match conferences across the summer period.

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It's something the Magpies boss could certainly do without as he gears his team up for a new campaign that includes a return to the Champions League.

"We are still active in the window and we’d love to add one or two players but it really is quality over quantity," was the latest update from Howe, whose words were published on The Chronicle on Monday afternoon.

"We don’t want to just add and I don’t think we need to do too much more. We are strong and in certain areas we’ve got good depth and will be able and resilient enough to get through a long, tough season.

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"You look at the fixtures we have beyond the first international break and it’s relentless. We are going to need everybody fit and available and to contribute. So it’s an important few weeks left in the window for us and we certainly need to do a little bit more."

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