Alexander Isak

[healthyaddiction]

16 minutes ago, Begbie said:

I must agree with Froggy, at the time we paid more than market value for him. Isak had 105 games and 33 goals in La Liga and had an known injury record. Howe did see something other clubs didnt see, and was willing to overpay to get his man. The «gamble» has paid off. 

Did he have a known injury record? I just looked on transfermarkt and it seems he only missed 5 games in total during his time in Sociedad (three seasons). He also scored the most goals for an U-21 player in a La Liga season since Sergio Aguero.

[Froggy]

26 minutes ago, kingxlnc said:

Hojlund at 72m is overpaying - only one good season, not much of a reputation beforehand

 

Hojlund performed extremely well in Austria as a teenager as well. He's also 4 years younger than Isak.

 

He was still an overpay/gamble (just like Isak), but Hojlund has plenty of time on his side.

[jonny1403]

5 hours ago, NSG said:

Indeed, again.

 

Boom headshot  Christ I like Froggy but he has some seriously dense takes at times 

[KaKa]

36 minutes ago, Begbie said:

I must agree with Froggy, at the time we paid more than market value for him. Isak had 105 games and 33 goals in La Liga and had an known injury record. Howe did see something other clubs didnt see, and was willing to overpay to get his man. The «gamble» has paid off. 

 

It's a strange thing just looking at a players numbers/output.

 

Isak's size, speed, athleticism and technique have always stood out and he was really starting to have some significant showings for Sweden about a year or so before we bought him, in the Euros I think it was.

 

He was clearly going to be far more dangerous in a more open and faster paced league than he was in Spain, and I imagine we recognised that. 

 

It's a similar story with Cunha at Wolves. At Atletico he wasn't even a consistent starter, and really didn't have much to show as far as numbers go. In the Prem he looks like a star, because of how well suited he is to the higher tempo and more open style.

 

And now every fan base is thirsting after both Cunha and Isak!

 

 

Edited December 31, 2024 by KaKa

[Keggy_Keagal]

When you look at how we identified targets ,the signings made Howe and the club has done incredibly well. Hall and Livramento could be the England full backs for 10 years . Isak is now proving himself to be one of the best strikers in world football . The initial signings of Trippier and Burn galvanized the club and Burn is still a consistent starting centre half now. Guimaraes is now worth double his fee. The only misses of I'm being really harsh were Tonali initially with the gambling addiction which I don't how that could have been foreseen and Barnes who's had to be content to be a squad player/supersub. Compare this to the type of business that Manchester United have done. 

[Menace]

I think we get our money back or close to it for Barnes - Tonali will be seen as a bargain.

[Kanj]

I won’t really entertain an argument about player valuation from someone who’s club singed Antony for 100m
 

[Boey_Jarton]

8 hours ago, Froggy said:

 

Quoting posts from two years ago. What have you become Mike?

 

Casemiro will cry into his two trophies while Isak will get the "the geordies really like me" trophy.

No need for Casemiro to cry at anything when he has a £20m contract until his mid thirties. 

[TRon]

1 hour ago, Wallsendmag said:

 

Definitely not. I've never defined my support of Newcastle United on winning trophies. If one comes along in the future then great but, and I can say this hand on heart, it wouldn't massively bother me if it didn't.

 

My dad first took me to SJP as a 6 year old back in 1984. His dad took him along as a 10 year old in the early 60s. He was there when we beat Newport 13-0! It's the pride of following your club, your dad's club, his dad's club that makes football what it is.

 

Trophies should be seen as a bonus as the majority of fans of clubs outside the top ones (and it's becoming more of a closed shop) may never see their club win one. Football is about more than that and those people who've latched onto the Man Utds, Liverpools and more recently the Chelseas and Man City's will never understand this. 

 

I've got a mate who follows Blyth Spartans home and away. Him and his group of mates go everywhere with them and even though they are currently worse than shite you can see how much pleasure following his home town team around the country every week brings him. He wouldn't swap it for the world.

 

That's what football is about. Not like what we witnessed at Wembley 2 years ago when we walked back to Wembley Park tube station side by side with Man Utd fans who looked like they couldn't have cared less. I'd honestly wrap it all in if I ever became that.

 

Agreed. While obviously the aim is to win stuff eventually, being able to enjoy your team's football, being proud of them as ambassadors for the city, and just looking forward to the next game in anticipation matters so much more. The ride since the PIF takeover and Howe's leadership has been like living on fantasy island in many ways. I would never swap that for a couple of trophies that Ten Hag won during such an era of misery for Man U fans.

 

Can't blame Froggy for trying though.

[relámpago blanco]

6 hours ago, Froggy said:

 

I'll be happy for you. A club like Newcastle didn't deserve what happened to you under Ashley. 

 

I look forward to our rivarly in the years to come.

Yeah but we are rivals now and you don't seem happy. Keep banging on about trophies 

[Collage]

Isak wasn't an overpay. You obviously don't pay just for current goals, assists, numbers, you pay for potential and ability. That's what scouting is about.

[Froggy]

21 minutes ago, relámpago blanco said:

Yeah but we are rivals now and you don't seem happy. Keep banging on about trophies 

 

The question was about trophies. 

 

Let's not downplay winning trophies. 

[TRon]

1 minute ago, Froggy said:

 

The question was about trophies. 

 

Let's not downplay winning trophies. 

 

Your club downplayed them without any input from us when they sacked Ten Hag pretty unceremoniously.

[Gawalls]

2 hours ago, Froggy said:

 

Hojlund performed extremely well in Austria as a teenager as well. He's also 4 years younger than Isak.

 

He was still an overpay/gamble (just like Isak), but Hojlund has plenty of time on his side.

Jesus Christ - prisoner cell block H performed extremely well In Australia ffs.

[Gawalls]

33 minutes ago, Collage said:

Isak wasn't an overpay. You obviously don't pay just for current goals, assists, numbers, you pay for potential and ability. That's what scouting is about.

Spot on - if we’re getting value for that money now then it’s not overpaying.  

[Froggy]

Just now, Gawalls said:

Spot on - if we’re getting value for that money now then it’s not overpaying.  

 

That's called hindsight. 

 

Anyway, don't want to post in here anymore. Didn't even realise it was the Isak thread. 

[Gawalls]

1 hour ago, TRon said:

 

Agreed. While obviously the aim is to win stuff eventually, being able to enjoy your team's football, being proud of them as ambassadors for the city, and just looking forward to the next game in anticipation matters so much more. The ride since the PIF takeover and Howe's leadership has been like living on fantasy island in many ways. I would never swap that for a couple of trophies that Ten Hag won during such an era of misery for Man U fans.

 

Can't blame Froggy for trying though.

I support them because I was born there - simple as.

[Gawalls]

Just now, Froggy said:

 

That's called hindsight. 

 

Anyway, don't want to post in here anymore. Didn't even realise it was the Isak thread. 

It’s called paying for potential, hindsight makes it sound like we got lucky and in not buying that.

 

 

Edited December 31, 2024 by Gawalls

[Wallsendmag]

2 hours ago, Froggy said:

 

Hojlund performed extremely well in Austria as a teenager as well. He's also 4 years younger than Isak.

 

He was still an overpay/gamble (just like Isak), but Hojlund has plenty of time on his side.

 

The Austrian league is dreadful though. It sits between the Greek and Norwegian leagues in the UEFA Coefficient lists. Fair enough he'd scored 9 goals in 18 for Sturm Graz but before then he failed to score in 19 games for Copenhagen and averaged 1 in 4 for Atalanta.

 

Isak scored 13 goals in 16 games in the Eredivisie which is a stronger league than the Austrian League, was scoring 1 goal in 3 in La Liga (over 100 games) and had been a Swedish International for 5 years.

 

I remember when we signed him and very few Newcastle fans batted an eyelid about the price, unlike when we signed the likes of Chris Wood and even Joelinton. Most people who'd watched La Liga knew he was a special talent.

 

Check page 1 on this very thread and start reading if you don't believe me. @KaKaeven comments that he thinks we got him on the cheap halfway down page 4. He was right.

[KaKa]

2 hours ago, Froggy said:

 

Hojlund performed extremely well in Austria as a teenager as well. He's also 4 years younger than Isak.

 

That's the whole point though, you went way too soon for Hojlund.

 

He hadn't even established himself as a starter in a top league yet and you spent that fee on him! To come in as your starting striker!

 

Isak had already played at least three full seasons at Sociedad by the time we went for him as our starting striker. And had shown a lot more at that level, to then make a reasonable assessment on.

 

It's really not comparable at all.

[James]

7 hours ago, Froggy said:

 

 

 

I look forward to our rivarly in the years to come.

we ain’t gonna be in League One

[Gawalls]

According to talk sport were selfish for putting such a high price on him (ad libbing a bit but they said something like that), think the actual line was the price we gave of £150m is propesterous. i was watching the YouTube video screaming in my head ITS A HANDS OFF FEE YOU MIRON!!!

[gdm]

3 hours ago, Begbie said:

I must agree with Froggy, at the time we paid more than market value for him. Isak had 105 games and 33 goals in La Liga and had a known injury record. Howe did see something other clubs didnt see, and was willing to overpay to get his man. The «gamble» has paid off. 

What known injury record?. This over pay stuff is nonsense. The club obviously saw something in him and within a few months he was already worth what we paid and since..well since he’s sky rocketed. 

[Froggy]

11 minutes ago, KaKa said:

 

That's the whole point though, you went way too soon for Hojlund.

 

He hadn't even established himself as a starter in a top league yet and you spent that fee on him! To come in as your starting striker!

 

Isak had already played at least three full seasons at Sociedad by the time we went for him as our starting striker. And had shown a lot more at that level, to then make a reasonable assessment on.

 

It's really not comparable at all.

 

Worth noting it wasn't me who compared them. I don't think they're comparable either. 

 

I do think Hojlund can get to a level where he's well worth the money paid. 

 

Saying that, maybe we're Hojlunds stepping stone. We're Sociedad.

[KaKa]

1 minute ago, Froggy said:

 

Worth noting it wasn't me who compared them. I don't think they're comparable either. 

 

I do think Hojlund can get to a level where he's well worth the money paid. 

 

Saying that, maybe we're Hojlunds stepping stone. We're Sociedad.

 

Yeah, I think there is talent there for sure.

 

Pretty tough to nurture it as the lead man at Man United though, especially when the team isn't firing on all cylinders.

 

I think for it to work at your club he needed to come in behind a more experienced striker already doing the business, that he'd eventually take over from in a couple of seasons. Would have been less pressure.

 

Think you could still pull that off to be fair, if you go for that more experienced striker in the upcoming windows.