Newcastle 'closing in' on £40m striker to give Liverpool fresh Alexander Isak hope

Newcastle are reportedly closing in on the signing of a new striker in a deal which could revive Liverpool's hopes of signing Alexander Isak. It has been a turbulent summer on Tyneside with their transfer window dominated by the saga involving their Swedish striker. He is desperate to join Liverpool before Monday's deadline but the Magpies are refusing to budge.

He was recently visited at his home by Newcastle chiefs and reiterated his desire to move to Anfield this summer. Liverpool have not ended their interest in Isak and could submit a renewed bid if there is an indication that a deal could be done. Their hopes of pulling off a move appear to have been boosted by reports that Newcastle are close to signing another striker.

They are nearing a deal to land Stuttgart attacker Nick Woltemade, according to the Daily Mail, having accelerated their interest over the last few hours. Earlier this summer, he was heavily linked with a move to Bayern Munich but it failed to materialise.

Stuttgart are thought to value Woltemade at around £40million, with no word on how much Newcastle are said to be paying in exchange for his services.

It comes after the Magpies saw two bids rejected for Wolves forward Jorgen Strand Larsen. He is believed to be keen on moving to St James Park but could end up staying at Molineux if Newcastle can get the Woltemade deal over the line.

The latter scored 12 league goals for Stuttgart last season and made his international debut for Germany at the end of the campaign. He has plenty of room for growth at 23 years of age and has an imposing frame at six feet and five inches tall.

It remains to be seen if Newcastle's pursuit of Woltemade will have a knock-on effect when it comes to Isak's future. Eddie Howe recently admitted that he had 'no idea' if the 25-year-old would still be at the club when the window closes.

"I've not been party to talks on this for a long time now," he said. "I've been preparing the team and giving my energy to players who want to play for Newcastle. That's where my energy is best served.

"I have no idea where that stands at this second. The ideal from Newcastle's side is we want clarity, we want to move forward. We want the narrative to change.

"We are in the start of the season now and we have to get results and try to focus on what we can control. We've given two really good performances and taken just one point. That's tough for us to take.

"The quality of Alex would have made a difference in the two games, there's no denying that. That said, the team functioned well and the performance doesn't happen without every part of the team functioning well."

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