Eddie Howe 'nervous' he could lose Alexander Isak to Arsenal in January transfer window
Arsenal have been put on red alert after former Chelsea striker Tony Cascarino insisted Newcastle United boss Eddie Howe was nervous about losing Alexander Isak in January.
Isak continued his sparkling form for the Magpies on Saturday as he bagged a hat-trick in a 4-0 victory over Ipswich Town in the Premier League. The Swede has been linked with a move away from St James' Park consistently for months but the striker has insisted he is happy in the North East.
However, the decision could be taken out of his hands. Newcastle are thought to be under pressure to sell in January in order to avoid punishment from the Premier League in regards their Profit and Sustainability Rules (PSR).
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When asked about whether he was convinced Isak would be staying at his club, Howe replied: "Yeah I am. I think we're trying to build, I say many times every transfer window that comes round, we're trying to build.
"And I think this window for us is probably more about getting the best out of the players that we have rather than looking externally. I don't see us doing huge business, incomings, so it goes without saying, we want to keep our best players."
But Cascarino is less convinced. Speaking on talkSPORT, the 62-year-old said: "It's quite clear, Eddie Howe is nervous.
"You know, 'We can't do much business, it's important we keep the best players we can,' and I totally get that by Eddie. He's got a challenge, he's going to have to fight off a number of clubs and whether they make a bid in excess of £100m, if that happens...
"One thing in the paper that Eddie quotes as well, because this says a lot, he said he's also very popular in the dressing room with the Newcastle lads. He spoke about not only his goalscoring but he actually said he's very popular there as well, so he would be a huge loss."
The Gunners remain on the lookout for a striker with Sporting's Viktor Gyokeres and Napoli's Victor Osimhen both being linked with Mikel Arteta's side.
