Latest news with #HugoEkitike
Yahoo
9 hours ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Liverpool join race for Ekitike - Wednesday's gossip
Liverpool expected to rival Newcastle for Hugo Ekitike, Reds also interested in Ollie Watkins and Victor Osimhen, and Eintracht Frankfurt reject Magpies' written offer for Ekitike. Liverpool are expected to rival Newcastle United for Eintracht Frankfurt's French striker Hugo Ekitike, 23, after being told Sweden striker Alexander Isak, 25, is not for sale in this window. (Sky Sports) Advertisement The Magpies feel the leaking of Liverpool's £120m interest into the public domain is designed to unsettle Isak. (Telegraph - subscription required) As well as Ekitike, Liverpool have also made enquiries about four other attackers in case they are unable to secure a deal for Isak - Aston Villa's Ollie Watkins, 29, Napoli's Victor Osimhen, 26, Yoane Wissa of Brentford, 28, and Real Madrid's Rodrygo, 24. (Mail+ - subscription required) Meanwhile, Frankfurt are understood to have rejected an offer from Newcastle worth £69m for Ekitike. (Sky Sports Germany) Napoli have informed Liverpool a deal for Uruguay striker Darwin Nunez, 26, can be considered off. (Fabrizio Romano) Advertisement Colombia winger Luis Diaz, 28, has made it clear he wants to leave the Reds after the club rejected a £58.6m bid from Bayern Munich. (Athletic - subscription required) Leeds United have reached an agreement in principle for Newcastle's 27-year-old English midfielder Sean Longstaff. (Athletic - subscription required) Tottenham are rivalling Inter Milan to sign 23-year-old Belgium defender Koni de Winter. (i paper) Bournemouth are holding out for £59m for Ukraine centre-back Illia Zabaryni, 22, who is wanted by Paris St-Germain. (Independent) Chelsea are ready to begin a summer clearout with Portugal forward Joao Felix, 25, in talks over a return to Benfica and France's Christopher Nkunku, 27, also set to leave. (Standard) Advertisement Manchester United have registered their interest in signing Juventus and Brazil midfielder Douglas Luiz this summer, with Everton also keen on the 27-year-old. (Football Insider) Liverpool and France centre-back Ibrahima Konate, 26, has rejected a lucrative approach from the Saudi Pro League. (Mirror) The Reds have put a £43.5m price tag on Konate for any clubs interested this summer. (AS - in Spanish) Sassuolo and Italy striker Andrea Pinamonti is attracting interest from West Ham, with London rivals Brentford also enquiring about the 26-year-old. (Standard) There is interest from Leeds United in signing Spain striker Gonzalo Garcia, 21, on loan from Real Madrid. (TBR Football) Advertisement Nottingham Forest have made Aston Villa and England Under-21s midfielder Jacob Ramsey, 24, their number one target this window. (Telegraph - subscription required)
New York Times
13 hours ago
- Sport
- New York Times
Newcastle's Alexander Isak dilemma: Does it make sense to sell him as they try to sign Hugo Ekitike?
Newcastle United have a conundrum on their hands. On Monday, The Athletic reported that they were working on a deal worth around €75million to sign Eintracht Frankfurt forward Hugo Ekitike. The insistence was that they wanted to have both Ekitike and star striker Alexander Isak as options for next season. Advertisement By Tuesday, The Athletic reported Liverpool had made an approach to sign Isak. While no formal offer has been submitted, they have communicated their interest in doing a deal with Newcastle in the region of £120m. Amid this all, Isak's preference is unknown. If Isak does want to move, then having a player in the squad who wants out is never a good idea. If he is happy to stay, that would alleviate the pressure on any sale. But this all leaves Newcastle with a dilemma. Do they try to keep Isak and sign Ekitike too, fulfilling their original plan? Do they keep Isak knowing there is a risk other clubs — including Liverpool — could try and take Ekitike ahead of them? Do they sell Isak in order to try and push through Ekitike and fund any other business they want to do this summer? The Athletic's reporters were asked whether it could make sense for Newcastle to sell Isak and sign Ekitike and analysed across a few different categories: on the pitch, financially, in terms of perception and availability-wise. Here, Thom Harris, Chris Weatherspoon, Jacob Whitehead and Anantaajith Raghuraman give their answers. Isak is a one-of-a-kind centre-forward; tall and powerful, technically gifted and elegant on the ball, but still able to pack a punch with his driving runs and ability to strike through the ball on both feet. He's also Premier League proven, with 44 goals across his last two campaigns. Ekitike does not bring such a guarantee, but in terms of profile — the way he operates in his No 9 role — there are few closer stylistic matches in world football. The Frenchman, almost three years Isak's junior, aged 23, is similarly effective when it comes to carrying the ball, despite his slender 6ft 3in (190cm) frame. He spearheaded Europe's most effective counter-attacking team last season — no team generated more expected goals (xG) from fast breaks than Eintracht Frankfurt — with his long-strided, mazy dribbles and quick decision-making at speed. Advertisement As we can see from the visualisation below, illustrating where both strikers received their passes last season, both are comfortable dropping into deeper positions and drifting out wide where they can pick up possession and take on their man. Ekitike attempted more take-ons and carried the ball even further than Isak last year; in that regard, Newcastle won't be downgrading too much if both deals were to go through. Ekitike also chooses his moments well to charge into goal-scoring positions, bundling home eight goals from inside the six-yard box last season, as many as Isak. His link-up around the penalty area is sharp too, with the following lay-off for Mario Gotze against Werder Bremen last November illustrating his alert box movement, as well as his presence of mind to pivot and play the ball in the heat of the moment, holding the defender off with ease. Stylistically, then, Newcastle's interest in Ekitike makes sense, particularly if he is to come in as an Isak replacement. His play style should translate to a team that embraces quick transitions and instinctive football in the final third, while his defensive application gels with Eddie Howe's philosophy without the ball. That said, he is not yet the finished product, and his arrival would not come without risk. Ekitike's shot selection can often be poor, a young player who can easily get carried away after gliding past a defender or two. His tall frame sometimes makes it difficult for him to adjust and wrap his body around shots, no stranger to a tame effort on goal while struggling to dig the ball out from under his feet. Despite a healthy tally of 15 Bundesliga goals last season, the quality of chances that fell his way (xG) suggests that the average striker should have scored 6.6 goals more. Ekitike is a a tremendously exciting player and his intriguing blend of height, power and agility on the ball fills an Isak-sized hole, on paper. But given his relative inexperience in top-flight football and a few finishing issues to iron out, it may take a few years for him to reach the brutal goal-scoring legacy that the Swede would leave behind. Thom Harris As detailed earlier this week by The Athletic, any financial problems for Newcastle under their current ownership are rule-based rather than cash-based. It's worth, therefore, assessing what the sale of Isak might do for the club's profitability and sustainability (PSR) position. Isak arrived on Tyneside three years ago and still has three years to run on a six-year contract. After including estimations of agent fees and the applicable transfer levy, his current book value at Newcastle stands at roughly £34m. Advertisement Selling him for £120m — or more — would bank Newcastle a huge amount of profit, even while not all the fee would flow their way. Real Sociedad are owed 10 per cent of any profit Newcastle make on Isak; based on a £120m fee, the Spanish club would receive around £6m. That would still leave Newcastle with a whopping estimated profit on Isak of £79.8m. From a PSR perspective, it would provide a huge boost to their headroom. With sales booked immediately while purchases are spread over the length of player contracts, the impact on club financials would be stark. Say they followed up the sale of Isak by purchasing Ekitike on a five-year deal for £75m. The amortisation costs on the latter, even after assorted fees on top of what went to Frankfurt, would only be around £16.4m annually. In other words, in 2025-26, the sale of Isak and purchase of Ekitike for the fees mooted here would result in a positive impact on Newcastle's bottom line of around £63.4m. Compared to 2024-25, the positive movement would be even higher, as there'd be roughly £11.2m in amortisation costs saved on Isak too, equating to a £74.6m positive swing between last season's finances and this. That ignores wages, of course, but losing Isak from the wage bill and replacing him with Ekitike might not have much, if any, financial impact when it comes to salaries. What's more, that £74.6m in positive movements this season would free up Newcastle to bolster their squad elsewhere. They could, in effect and assuming all else remains equal (it won't, of course), add £74.6m more in costs to 2025-26 and arrive back at the same profit or loss figure as last season. Unlike in any effective Isak/Ekitike swap, further signings would mean Newcastle buying in someone new without shipping out someone similarly remunerated. Using up that £74.6m would have to incorporate the wages of any new signings, so it wouldn't be the case that they could utilise it all on transfer fees (£74.6m in annual amortisation would equate to well over £300m in fees if spread over five years). But even a thought exercise taking that into account shows the possibilities made available by sanctioning a big sale. Advertisement You can cut it any number of hypothetical ways, but say Newcastle wanted to go out and buy two £55m players and pay them £200,000 a week on five-year deals. After including extra fees and employment costs, each would cost them £24.5m annually, or £49m combined. Even after our hypothetical Isak sale, Ekitike signing and the arrival of those two players, the difference in Newcastle's bottom line between last season and 2025-26 would be a positive £25m or so. This is a buffer which could go towards helping in 2026-27, when they'll need to keep amortising those new fees and paying new wages without a repeat of the Isak sale. In other words, it would be a huge boost for them financially. Chris Weatherspoon At what cost? Newcastle clearly love Ekitike, who they have attempted to sign on two previous occasions, and who is coveted by a host of Europe's elite clubs. He is 23 years old, highly creative, and has the capacity to physically dominate. But if the price of that deal includes selling Isak to Liverpool, any fan goodwill evaporates. You throw Ekitike into a difficult situation, in a new league — Bundesliga strikers have not historically adapted quickly to English football — and ask him to instantly reproduce Isak's production. Ekitike may well be a success, but he is not proven, whereas Isak undoubtedly is — with 54 Premier League goals since joining three years ago, he is Newcastle's best forward since Alan Shearer. Now, figures at Newcastle are still insistent that Isak is not for sale, and that their plan is for Ekitike to play alongside Isak in the future. There are no indications that a sale needs to be countenanced, or that they will even enter negotiations with Liverpool. They still hope to ink him to a new deal. Unless Isak agitates for a move, this may go no further. But to play at the top of the transfer market, you have to play with high odds — Newcastle are now in that space. Jacob Whitehead Isak has had only one long-term injury over the course of his career, but has had to deal with niggling issues across the past few seasons. As the graph below shows, he missed 107 days (and 18 matches for club and country) during the 2022-23 season due to a thigh injury, according to Transfermarkt. He has dealt with three groin injuries across the last two seasons, in addition to a broken toe and a hamstring issue in 2024-25. In contrast, Ekitike has had only one major injury — a hamstring issue that sidelined him for 69 days in 2021-22 and forced him to miss 14 matches. The caveat with the 23-year-old is that his playing load has been lower than Isak's. Ekitike has crossed 1,500 league minutes only once in his career — in 2024-25 — compared to Isak's six seasons in which he has played that many minutes. Anantaajith Raghuraman
Yahoo
14 hours ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Liverpool now expected to rival Newcastle for Hugo Ekitike
According to a report from Sky Sports News, Liverpool are expected to rival Newcastle for Frankfurt striker Hugo Ekitike (23), after the Magpies told the Premier League champions that their own striker Alexander Isak (25) is 'not for sale'. Fabrizio Romano reported earlier today that Liverpool would turn their attention to the Newcastle target if they were unsuccessful in their bid to sign Isak – as Sky Sports confirm this is now indeed the case. The Athletic reported yesterday that Newcastle were in talks over a €75m potential deal for Ekitike, following interest from Manchester United and Chelsea during this window. Advertisement After a failed stint with Paris Saint-Germain, Ekitike has reinvented himself in the Bundesliga with 22 goals and 12 assists in 48 matches during the 2024-2025 season. The Frenchman started his career with Reims, where he scored 11 goals in 26 games during his breakout season with Les Champenois before his move to PSG. GFFN | George Boxall
BBC News
14 hours ago
- Sport
- BBC News
'Two class lads up top... Can't wait'
Newcastle doing first team business in a transfer window. Who knew?!Following the exciting signing of Anthony Elanga last week, we are now being linked with Hugo Ekitike from Frankfurt. Yes please! Great. I is being made of whether or not this means Alexander Isak is due to move on given he has been playing as a lone striker. I don't think an Ekitike signing, if it happens, means that Isak is going anywhere. We've been crying out for squad depth for nearly two years now. Most teams have more than one dynamic forward those of us who have actually watched Alexander Isak play know that he is no stranger to roaming the pitch a little more - dropping deep to collect the ball and playing out wider when he needs to. I think adding a player like Ekitike into the mix will unlock a little more of Isak's ability to score from open play - as well as adding goals to our game from Ekitike up for news notifications on your clubCast your minds back a year or so when many of us wondered how Bruno and Tonali would play together. Could they? Would they? Spoiler alert: they could and they did. Just because we haven't seen Isak play effectively with another striker doesn't mean he can't. These are young players who get to train under Eddie Howe. They'll be working together in no also means Isak can rest a little with the glut of games we have coming up. We know he's had slight injuries here and there and played through them precisely because of our lack of options. Bring Ekitike to Newcastle and watch how he integrates with the rest of the team. Two class lads up top. Can't if it does mean Isak is moving on, then we could surely do worse than an exciting new prospect to replace him. The future is still very bright for more from Charlotte Robson at the True Faith: Newcastle United Podcast, external
BBC News
14 hours ago
- Business
- BBC News
Would Ekitike partner Isak - or be his replacement?
It is not often supporters are worried by rumours their club might be about to break their transfer that is what is happening among some Newcastle United fans as the Magpies explore a move for Eintracht Frankfurt forward Hugo Ekitike in a deal that could cost more than £ Premier League champions Liverpool also in the market for a central striker and known to have firm interest in Newcastle's Alexander Isak, it is inevitable some are drawing a certain Sport understands the Premier League champions have made a move towards a deal for the Sweden striker in recent days. They have also explored the parameters for other centre-forward to sources, it is believed a package to sign Isak could cost up to £130m - and the Magpies have been steadfast in their stance that their superstar striker is not for who know Newcastle believe they are trying to build a multi-layered attack capable of quickly switching who know Ekitike, who has also been linked with Liverpool, know him as a versatile forward capable of scoring from all sorts of have maintained throughout the summer that their top players - and Isak is certainly one of those - are not available for will Ekitike be a partner for Isak - or is there is a danger he could be his replacement? 'Message is still that Isak's not for sale' Isak, 25, joined Newcastle from Real Sociedad in 2022 for £ remains their record buy and Newcastle supporters will tell you he has been worth every penny. Over the past three seasons he has scored 54 league goals and that strike rate has led to him regularly been linked with a move the second half of last season Ekitike, like Isak, played as a lone striker. The 23-year-old scored 15 goals and contributed eight assists during the campaign as Frankfurt finished third in the Bundesliga. So, two players who play in a very similar way and a team that has generally played with just one central striker under Eddie Howe. Where could the Frenchman fit in?"It's not a given that Ekitike will play second fiddle to Isak - in fact there is a hope that they could play together," believes BBC Newcastle's Matthew Raisbeck."Newcastle like versatility. They tried to sign Chelsea's Joao Pedro this summer, who is another versatile striker. "I don't expect them to switch formation for the first game of the season, but this move would allow a greater scope to change tactics throughout the game."The message is still that Isak is not for sale. Newcastle are determined to keep him and don't need to sell for financial reasons. "They are in the Champions League next season and want to be competitive in the league and all the cups so, even before Callum Wilson left, they were always going to need another striker."Ekitike has the profile they want and allows the team to be so much more flexible tactically."Newcastle have quality but often at times last season lacked depth. This signing ticks both of those boxes." What Ekitike would bring to Newcastle - the stats Signing Ekitike could give Newcastle a pre-season selection statistics do suggest Isak and Ekitike have a lot of overlap in their play and have the same best position - playing as a lone played 98% of his Premier League minutes last season as a central striker, only briefly featuring on the left of a front three. His central role in Newcastle's attack is surely not to be messed with, given a return of 23 goals in 34 games?However, a similar argument could be made for Ekitike. He scored 15 league goals in 31 starts for Frankfurt last season and played as a striker 95% of the time. Newcastle are also well-stocked in wide areas, with Anthony Gordon, Harvey Barnes, Jacob Murphy and new £55m signing Anthony maps for both forwards show they share a tendency to get on the ball in the inside left channel, but with Ekitike roaming more freely and a little deeper. This perhaps offers encouragement to those who believe they can play alongside each other, with Ekitite at times dropping back to link with the midfielders. He is a provider as well as a scorer, ranking in the top 6% among forwards for creating chances in last season's Bundesliga. 'Ekitike is versatile and smart' Newcastle's interest in Ekitike goes back to January 2021, the first transfer window with their Saudi Arabian then they were unable to make a deal work and in the summer they ultimately chose Isak the admiration has remained for a player who started at Reims and left for Paris St-Germain in 2023 but failed to make an impact and had a spell on loan at Frankfurt before joining the German club permanently last summer."His tactical understanding is one of his great strengths," German football writer Constantin Eckner told BBC Sport."He served as a lone striker as well as part of a two-striker set-up under Frankfurt manager Dino Toppmoller. "During the first half of last season, Ekitike and Omar Marmoush formed a fearsome strike pairing which was torn apart when Manchester City signed Marmoush for £63m in January."Subsequently, Frankfurt did not acquire a replacement for Marmoush and instead changed the tactical set-up, with Ekitike the lone striker."He is versatile and not just a striker that feels at home inside the box. Ekitike might not be the most dynamic player, but he can get past defenders with smart moves."Eckner also told BBC Sport that Frankfurt's sporting director Markus Krosche has stated the club will not let Ekitike go for less than £ added: "It seems as if the Bundesliga side are fine with selling yet another top player to a Premier League club. "Their current model is that they find these gems, try to develop them and then fund their next signings through the money they generate."
