If the Magpies had been successful in securing this former phenom, everything may have been very different.
Alexander Isak, a star for Newcastle United, is perhaps the best center-forward the Tyneside club has had in a very long time—possibly going all the way back to Alan Shearer’s heyday.
The £63 million club record acquisition was made last summer to lead the Eddie Howe-led revolution, and despite a season marred by injuries, the Swede still made an impression with ten Premier League goals in just 17 starts.
Newcastle is on the verge of making a comeback after a long absence from the forefront. The club finally made the Champions League last year after a two-decade absence thanks to a fourth-place result.
Isak is the frontman assigned the task of scoring goals, and after building on his successful seasons from last year by scoring five goals in his first eight games across all competitions this year, the “outstanding talent” (as described by Howe) has become at ease in his own skin.
Shearer was the final striker for the St. James’ Park team to actually possess first-class credentials; players like Demba Ba and Papiss Cisse were both exceptional on their respective days but were unable to consistently maintain their talent.
How good was Alan Shearer?
Shearer is the hero that every Magpie dreams of being as they grow up. He is also the club’s all-time leading scorer with 206 goals from 405 games, five more than the late Jackie Milburn.
The 53-year-old has scored 260 goals overall, a number that towers beyond the abundance of attacking talent that has graced English shores over the years. In fact, the 53-year-old is the Premier League’s all-time leading scorer.
Shearer’s record has been preserved for even longer thanks to the £100 million transfer of England captain and record scorer Harry Kane to Bayern Munich in the summer. Whether the 30-year-old returns to claim the title is still up in the air, though, having scored 213 goals for Tottenham Hotspur.
After winning the league championship for the Riversiders in 1994–1955, Shearer was acquired by his childhood club from Premier League rival Blackburn Rovers in 1996 in a trade that set a world record of £15 million.
All good things must come to an end, and while Shearer only won one league championship with Blackburn on Tyneside, he cemented his reputation as one of the nastiest attackers of his generation and cemented his place in the annals of the division.
Newcastle was eager to find a suitable successor in 2004, as the former Southampton youth product approached his twilight. They believed they had discovered the prodigy they were looking for in Wayne Rooney, but eventually, this particular youngster chose a different path.
Leave a Reply