Man City’s chances of signing Alexander Isak ahead of Liverpool after transfer bombshell

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Alexander Isak has just become the transfer saga of the summer, but can Manchester City sign the striker ahead of Liverpool?

The biggest clubs in football have been put on red alert this week after Alexander Isak made it clear he wants to leave Newcastle United this summer.

Isak’s future has been in doubt throughout the window, but Newcastle had been maintaining that their star striker was not for sale.

However, their tune might have to change after the Daily Mail reported that Isak has told the Magpies that he ‘wants to explore a move away from the club.’

Isak’s timing is strange, though, given a lot of his possible destinations have already spent millions this summer, with Newcastle unwilling to let him go for anything less than £150m.

After a couple of fallow years while clubs got to grips with PSR, the summer transfer window has seen a return of obscene spending by the Premier League’s biggest clubs.

Manchester City have spent approaching £130m to sign Tijjani Reijnders, Rayan Ait Nouri, Rayan Cherki and Sverre Nypan, but even that’s been blown out of the water by Liverpool.

The reigning champions’ spend will soon pass £300m when they complete the signing of Hugo Ekitike, and they remain in the hunt for Isak despite the arrival of the Eintracht Frankfurt striker.

City, however, will not be entering the race for Isak for two key reasons.

• READ MORE: Man City fans have shared their real feelings after hearing Liverpool could sign Alexander Isak now

Why Manchester City won’t sign Alexander Isak from Newcastle United

Given City are looking to strengthen this summer after a disastrous campaign last term, it wouldn’t be surprising if they decided to add another sensational Scandinavian striker to their ranks.

However, since they’ve got Erling Haaland and signed Omar Marmoush in January, they simply don’t need Isak.

The Athletic reports: “Perhaps had Erling Haaland not signed up to Manchester City for the next decade and Omar Marmoush not joined the party in January, City may have made room for such a special player.

“But with those two striker options, it is impossible to see how they could accommodate Isak as Haaland has to play centrally. Yes, he could theoretically play off the left wing but would he want to play that role?”

It’s also then reiterated that Pep Guardiola wants his squad to get smaller rather than bigger, with the manager jokingly threatening to quit his job earlier this year if he didn’t get his way.

It’s added: “Guardiola is also looking to trim his squad, having added eight players since January. It is a non-starter.”

Alexander Isak stats compared to Erling Haaland in 2024-25

It’s almost a shame that the possibility of Haaland and Isak playing together is so remote, because they could form one of the most devastating strike partnerships ever seen.

Maybe football has just moved too far away from 4-4-2 for it to work now, but Isak is so good at dropping deep, getting on the ball in the pockets and threading lovely through balls that it could work even in the modern day.

City obviously don’t need another world-class striker, though, given they exclusively play with one up top. Especially one that would cost a British transfer record and wants £300,000-a-week.

However, Isak and Haaland’s Premier League stats from last season make for interesting reading.

Isak certainly had the better season last term, with more goals and more assists in a Newcastle side that hasn’t got nearly the overall quality as City’s.

It’s also quite obvious how much better Isak is than Haaland on the ball. He touches it significantly more, for one, but also has better passing and dribbling rates.

It’s easy to see how Isak could fit into City’s system thanks to his quality in possession; however, his underperformance on xG shows he does miss some chances he should score, whereas Haaland couldn’t have been much more on the money.

Haaland is still the man for City.