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Newcastle boss Eddie Howe has refused to be drawn into a war of words with Liverpool counterpart Arne Slot after his “smaller club” jibe amid the ongoing Alexander Isak saga.
The Reds boss spoke out after the 26-year-old Sweden international, who headed for Anfield from St James’ Park in a protracted £125million switch after going on strike this summer, limped out of Wednesday night’s 5-1 Champions League win at Eintracht Frankfurt with a groin problem.
Slot later said Isak, who has one goal in eight appearances for his new club, was struggling because “you cannot compare a player who maybe hasn’t trained or played in pre-season for a smaller club to then go to Liverpool”.
Asked if he felt he had to go in to bat for Newcastle over Slot’s “smaller club” remark given their recent re-emergence, Howe, whose side beat Liverpool in last season’s Carabao Cup final, said: “I don’t have to do that, I don’t feel. But you obviously know what my answer would be.”
He added: “I don’t think that’s wise, for me to get involved in those discussions, I think. Alex is no longer at this football club, so I won’t comment on it.”
Quite what Slot meant by his comment is open to interpretation, but Howe launched a fierce defence of the Magpies’ care for their elite players.
He said: “The set-up here is very good. It is not perfect, we’ve got things to improve and to grow.
“But the owners here have developed the facilities since I’ve been here very, very well and you can see there is building work going on currently to hopefully deliver even better in the future.
“But I have no complaints. We’ve got elite athletes here, many of them, and touch wood, we’re managing them pretty well at the moment.”
Isak’s actions cast a cloud over the summer on Tyneside and left fans concerned that the club remained vulnerable despite their apparent wealth, with potential buyers hovering around some of their other big names.
It emerged this week that Italy midfielder Sandro Tonali had signed a contract extension which could keep him at St James’ Park until the summer of 2030 while he was serving a 10-month ban for gambling offences.
Howe, who will send his side into Premier League battle with Fulham in front of their own fans on Saturday, said: “I think Sandro has felt the love from everyone connected to the club.
“The supporters have been absolutely incredible with him, during the ban for one, but then I think that support then followed through to helping Sandro return to football and helping him with his issues he had off the pitch.
“I think he felt that love and support, and he needed it at that time. Now, we’re seeing the benefits. It’s easy to forget the difficulties he was going through in that period, but I think we’re seeing the benefits of that team-work and support now. He’s been brilliant since returning to football.”
