Alexander Isak has been Newcastle United’s attacking fulcrum since the beginning of December, scoring nine goals and charging the revival that has hurled Eddie Howe back into Champions League contention and set up a Carabao Cup semi-final with Arsenal.
The Sweden star has bagged in seven successive top-flight fixtures, leading Sky Sports’ Jamie Carragher to hail him as “the best striker in the Premier League.” Carragher went on to suggest that the gap right now is vast.
Carragher’s words ring true. Isak is not just the most in-form goalscorer in England right now, but he’s also a menace of a player with an impressive technical capacity.
There’s no hiding from the Magpies’ frustrating start to the season, seemingly hungover from a disappointing summer and unable to bring together the kind of fluency and cohesion that has become a staple of Howe’s side in recent years.
They’ve put all that behind them alright. Newcastle are firing on all cylinders and might just maintain their giddy levels if Isak remains fit throughout the business end of the campaign.
However, there’s still a pressing need for a striker at St. James’ Park.
Why Newcastle need a striker
Isak is an incredible player, but he’s also prone to injury, having missed his share of Toon matches since signing for a club-record £63m fee in 2022, ending his Real Sociedad career.
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21
14
3
23/24
40
25
10
22/23
29
11
14
Also, transfer rumours are part and parcel for a striker performing at the top of their game, and if Newcastle fail to reach their collective goals this term, keeping him on Tyneside will be no small feat.
Arsenal are known to have a vested interest in the 25-year-old, though they are hardly going to be the only team in a long line of suitors.
Away from Isak’s future, veteran Callum Wilson is out of contract at the end of the season and has only played four times this term due to incessant setbacks.
Newcastle did swoop in for Sheffield United youngster William Osula, 21, last summer, signing the talented centre-forward for £15m, but he’s scarcely featured and is clearly not ready to take the next step in his development.
Transfer Focus
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Several names spun around the rumour mill last year, but now United could be poised to pounce on a talented target.
Newcastle's search for a striker
Newcastle have been credited with an interest in LOSC Lille striker Jonathan David for quite a while, but we’re reaching kitchen sink time as far as the Canadian’s future is concerned.
Out of contract at the end of the season, David is hot property, and Sky Sports have confirmed that four unnamed Premier League sides have approached the player’s representatives over a pre-contract deal.
A little over a month ago, Football Insider confirmed that Newcastle had sent scouts to watch the 25-year-old in action, but that the competition was thick. That is beginning to look like the truth, and PIF need to act quickly.
What Jonathan David would bring to Newcastle
There will be a hope that Newcastle’s groundwork over the past year or so could hold sway at the negotiating table, especially now that they have rekindled their attacking verve and are pushing for a seat back at Europe’s elite table.
David must relish the chance to jet over the Channel, especially given that he’s previously claimed his fierce desire to star in the Premier League one day. With 17 goals and five assists across 27 matches this season – -there’s a good chance he’ll get his wish.
Like Isak, he’s a complete striker, boasting an array of qualities beyond that of his ball-striking ability – though his shooting boots are among the best that Europe has to offer.
In fact, David has actually been praised as “one of the best strikers in the world” by media personality Tony Marinaro, having notched 124 goal contributions from 210 matches for Lille, equating to a goal-contribution-per-game rate of 0.59.
At Newcastle, Isak’s, incidentally, stands at a rate of 0.66, though given that David has made incremental progress each year in regard to his prolificness, there’s every reason that he could thrive as the Sweden international’s foil at St. James’ Park.
Given that both players have an incredible scoring sense and sharp technical skills, David has properties that are similar to Newcastle’s number nine – as has been noted by Football Transfers – and this could see him dovetail right into Howe’s thriving system.
As per FBref, Isak ranks among the top 5% of Premier League strikers in 2024/25 for goals scored, the top 8% for shot-creating actions and the top 20% for progressive passes per 90, underscoring Carragher’s claims that he’s the best of the best right now. Not only a goalscorer but a crucial team player too.
David, meanwhile, ranks among the top 2% of strikers in Ligue 1 for goals scored per 90 and the top 14% for pass completion, arguably more clinical in front of goal while keeping it crisp, allowing his teammates to bounce off of him and then thread balls back through.
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27
17
5
0.81
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47
26
9
0.74
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40
26
4
0.75
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48
19
0
0.40
20/21
48
13
5
0.37
As you can see, he’s enjoying his most clinical campaign to date in France, and while David will be playing with the added impetus of a bumper move abroad, he’s surely demonstrated that he has the talent and skill set to be Newcastle’s next version of Isak – it would only make Howe’s side even better.
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