Paul Merson becomes the latest pundit to slam Newcastle United rebel Alexander Isak for his 'ridiculous' behaviour
Everybody seems to have an opinion on Alexander Isak's conduct this summer as he tries to force a move away from Newcastle United.
Those opinions have mostly been pretty negative towards the Sweden striker, with even former players condemning his behaviour. There have, of course, been a few people who support his right to carry on the way he has, but those have been few and far between.
We'd have expected former players to have sided with the 25-year-old as they'd have been in situations where they've been tied into contracts they wanted out of, but yesterday Gabby Agbonlahor practically told Isak to shut up and return to playing for Newcastle.
Now, Paul Merson has said that there doesn't feel like there's a way back for Isak at Newcastle.
Paul Merson laments the amount of power players have these days
Merson was one of the worst culprits pushing the Isak to Arsenal narrative towards the back end of last year, but even he feels Isak has let himself down with his conduct.
“It’s an unbelievable situation Isak has put himself in. He’s taking a big gamble by reportedly saying he’ll never play for Newcastle again.
“Newcastle is a big city but it is a fish bowl in terms of football with it being a one-club city. I wouldn’t want to be in his shoes if he doesn’t get his move. He’s upset a lot of Newcastle fans with his actions.
“If he now doesn’t get away before the transfer window closes, he will need to score some serious goals to get the Newcastle fans anywhere near back on side.
“If he leaves, he won’t be leaving Newcastle as a hero. Had he kept quiet, he still could have potentially gone for big money, giving Newcastle serious profit after giving his all to the club. He was a big part of that trophy success last season, and he would have been rightly remembered for it.
“Everyone could have shaken hands and been happy with the deal eventually. But that’s now completely gone. The situation is totally ridiculous. It just shows you the players have all the power.”
There may be a way out of this for Isak
Isak's only hope to come out of this with any shred of a reputation left, should he not get his move away, is to sack his representatives and pin it all on them while issuing a massive apology to the club and the supporters.
It won't be an instant forgiveness, but if that becomes a precursor to him scoring another 20 goals next season, we'd consider his apology accepted, and then we can cash in on him next summer. Hopefully, to a club abroad rather than Liverpool.
How likely is any of that to happen? Very, very unlikely.
