Newcastle United chairman Yasir Al-Rumayyan makes non-verbal statement of intent after PIF visit Alexander Isak's home for talks
The Alexander Isak versus Newcastle United stand-off reached a whole new level on Monday ahead of Liverpool's visit to St James' Park.
You couldn't have scripted a more appropriate game to kick off the season at St James' Park than Newcastle facing the club that has caused the Magpies so much stress this summer.
The game itself generated more than enough drama to feast on for a while, but Craig Hope broke a story just 20 minutes before kick-off last night that stirred the pot even more.
The Daily Mail revealed that Jamie Reuben and Jacobo Solis visited Alexander Isak at home for crunch talks on Monday.
We are waiting to find out the results of the literal in-house talks
There has been no official update yet, but the narrative remains the same in that Alexander Isak is refusing to play for Newcastle; however, Craig Hope has suggested that the club are willing to give the rebellious striker a new contract to keep him at the club for another season, likely containing a release clause so he can leave next summer.
Meanwhile, chairman Yasir Al-Rumayyan was in attendance at St James' Park last night, and the governor of the PIF made a point of heading to the pitch at full-time to shake the hand of Eddie Howe in what can only be seen as a statement of intent from the PIF.
There has been a lot of talk about whether the PIF are still invested in Newcastle United after a difficult transfer window, no appointment of a new CEO or sporting director and still no word on the stadium.
All of those things feel connected, and when a new CEO is announced, we expect a stadium announcement to follow, and a new sporting director should help with future transfer windows - if they don't leave a week before.
Eddie Howe is loving the 'I don't know' response to the media's questions lately
Eddie Howe was asked why Yasir Al-Rumayyan was in town after the game, but Howe remained his usual tight-lipped self.
"I don't know why he's here in the sense of if that's the main reason. He's here, obviously, to watch the team and support the team and show his presence, which is much-appreciated from my perspective and much-loved by everyone when he's here and connecting with the players.
"He's the owner, he's the most important person in terms of directing which decisions we make, but as I said, I'm not party to any conversations that have happened today, so I've got no idea what direction that's in."
With less than a week to go until the transfer deadline, let's hope that he's in town to sign off on some big-money deals.
