There seems to remain some dispute over the extent to which promises made to Alexander Isak were broken.The Sweden international appears to be under the impression that Newcastle understood he intended to depart the club in the summer transfer window.Now, head coach Eddie Howe’s latest comments would appear to indicate that the club was indeed aware of the 25-year-old’s intentions.Eddie Howe confirms Alexander Isak exit plans(Photo by Stu Forster/Getty Images)The English head coach confirmed to the press (via comments relayed on X by Ben Jacobs) that conversations were held with Isak over his future.It’s not exactly the best look for the Magpies, who have repeatedly villainised the former Real Sociedad hitman over his refusal to take part in the club’s pre-season preparations. Eddie Howe on whether Alexander Isak told him he wanted to leave two weeks before the end of the season. "Me and Alex had conversations towards the end of the season. Yes, I am not going to sit here and deny that. Yes, we had discussions about his future." pic.twitter.com/58qfxiNlcC— Ben Jacobs (@JacobsBen) August 22, 2025In Newcastle’s defence, they are perfectly entitled to secure a potential successor before moving on their top asset.However, one can most certainly forgive the frustration being felt over in Isak’s camp at the club’s bumbling efforts in the summer transfer window.Joao Pedro has gone to Chelsea, Bryan Mbeumo and Benjamin Sesko to Manchester United, and it remains to be seen whether the northeast-based outfit can get Yoane Wissa over the line.Incompetence is putting it mildly!Newcastle are doing harm to their future prospectsThe fact remains that Newcastle’s poor handling of the Alexander Isak saga is doing more harm than good.Yes, decision-makers at St James’ Park may rightly argue that in keeping the Swede against his will, they’ll guarantee they still have one quality striker at the club come the end of the window.The question for Newcastle, of course, is whether they want that striker to be a very frustrated, disgruntled Isak.More to the point, are our Premier League rivals not concerned that it may take time to reintegrate the footballer into the squad? If he’s even open to that eventuality.Furthermore, do Newcastle not fear the player’s value plummeting if he continues his strike action well into the 2025/26 season?Is that a reality the club is prepared to contend with if they also fail to sign Wissa or a competent successor in the window?What a huge mess Newcastle have willingly landed themselves in; all in an apparently vain attempt to appear in control of the narrative.Join our channel of readers on WhatsApp to get the day’s top stories straight to your mobileThe post ‘Had conversations’: Liverpool fans will be on red alert after major Newcastle update appeared first on The Empire of The Kop.