The message dropped in the Newcastle players’ WhatsApp group chat and finally, after months of drama and intrigue, they knew Alexander Isak was gone.

Isak confirmed he was off to Liverpool and thanked them for the memories – the Champions League nights and the League Cup triumph. The players responded one by one.

Given he had probably not seen any of them all summer, refusing to participate to ensure Newcastle sold him, you could understand if at least some were not overly pleased.

Were they all good messages?

“Yeah, of course, yeah!” Dan Burn says, after recalling the story.

Interesting, because the narrative emanating from Tyneside over the summer is one of fire and fury that Isak, with three years remaining on his contract, withdrew from pre-season then refused to play for the club

See Full Page