Newcastle United: Alan Shearer interviews Alexander Isak
2025-01-31
Category: sports

When you spend time with Alexander Isak, you can see how much he is loving life at Newcastle United and also understand why he keeps getting better and better as a player.I would say he is probably a manager's dream, in terms of his professionalism and lifestyle, because you never read about him, other than the headlines he makes for what he does on the pitch.I went back to my old club to meet Isak this week for BBC Sport - you can watch my interview on Football Focus on BBC One at 12:00 GMT on Saturday - and was hugely impressed by the way he spoke.His happiness and his determination, plus his focus on football, all shone through.
He lives a quiet life, and doesn't really like going out - he just loves walking his dog, which must be magnificent for his manager Eddie Howe, especially when you hear of some stories of what my old Newcastle team-mates got up to.But while Isak is very unassuming as far as superstar footballers go, he is also friendly and very much a team player. I am told he loves a laugh and a joke in the dressing room, and he was all smiles when he spoke to me.He just does most of his talking on the pitch, which is the most important place for any player to be seen and heard.
World class - but still looking to improve
As I said on last week's Match of the Day, I feel that Isak has put himself into the 'world class' category now, with his performances for Newcastle over the past two seasons.Along with Mohamed Salah at Liverpool and Manchester City's Erling Haaland, he is one of the three standout forwards we have got in the Premier League.Sure, the other two have done it for longer in England, but Isak got 25 goals in all competitions last season, and has 19 already this campaign so he is bang on target to smash that total this time.He's like an assassin, the way he puts chances away, but what I really liked from talking to him is that you can tell he is still looking for ways to improve his game at the age of 25.I asked him for his favourite, or best, goal that he has scored so far this season, and you will have to watch to find out which one he chose, and why.What I will tell you is that it was different to my pick, which was his powerful header against Arsenal in November. I saw that as a bit of a throwback goal, the kind that I used to love to score, and it came from what I'd describe as a dream delivery, too.There was no nonsense from the winger, Anthony Gordon, who just whipped the cross in and it is a fantastic ball - a nightmare for the defenders and goalkeeper but for a forward it was perfect - early, with pace and whip on it. Isak did the rest, and we are getting used to seeing that now.
One of the things that makes him pretty unique as a player is that he has scored all sorts of fantastic goals, including his second against Southampton on Saturday. That has to be up there too because of his fantastic first touch, and the way it played the ball perfectly into his path to get his shot away.Like me, though, he doesn't care too much if his goals are spectacular or not, as long as they go in.I remember talking to Isak this time last year, and Howe and his assistant Jason Tindall walked in and said one of the things he could do better at was tap-ins, those kind of two or three-yard finishes where you are just in the right place at the right time.Isak felt the same way and he has clearly worked on that, in terms of his positioning and where you need to be to get on the end of balls into the box.As he says himself, small details can change a lot. He feels it has got him other types of goals, as well as more goals, and I loved hearing about that -  and all the different aspects of his game - 12 months on.
His past has shaped him - but what about his future?
Another thing I asked Isak about is where he has come from, and how his background shaped him as a person and a player.He grew up playing street football in the suburbs of Stockholm and there is still an element of that to his playing style now, with the way he caresses the ball and his dribbling ability.His parents had to flee to Sweden from Eritrea and start a new life there, which tells you what they are made of and how tough they had to be.There is a bit of steel about him too - maybe not when you look at him or talk to him, but certainly when he is out on the pitch.Aggression is part of his game, the same as his skill on the ball or his intelligence to drop deep or make runs and stretch defences.He can handle himself physically, and he is quite comfortable dealing with speculation about his future too.I think he finds it complimentary that people are saying that other clubs want him because of how well he is doing, but none of that talk comes from him, and he is certainly not letting it affect his form.He is clearly an ambitious guy who wants to play in the Champions League, but like the Newcastle fans who adore him, I am hoping he can fulfil those aims at St James' Park.I ended our chat by telling him to keep doing what he is doing, and joked that nine-year contracts seem to be in fashion for strikers at the moment.It would be lovely to see him stay as long as that and help the team win some trophies, but I guess we will have to wait and see whether he listened to me or not.Alan Shearer was speaking to BBC Sport's Chris Bevan.