Arsenal FC will take on Newcastle United in a friendly on the other side of the world this Sunday. Team News wise, this one is all about two guys who won’t be there. The first is Alexander Isak, who was left out of the travel squad, amid strong links to several clubs this summer transfer window. The other name is Viktor Gyokeres, Sporting CP striker and future Arsenal player. It was hoped that Gyokeres would get his transfer to Arsenal finalized in time to join the club on their charter flight to the Far East on Saturday.
It didn’t happen, as this was an especially tedious transfer saga, but a medical is booked now, so this narrative will finally reach its logical conclusion soon. More on that in a bit.
Arsenal vs Newcastle United FYIs
Competition: Preseason club friendly
Preview Material for Both Clubs: Starting XI Predictions Team News
Kickoff time: 12:30pm GMT, 7:30am EST, Sunday July 27
Location: Singapore National Stadium, Singapore
Remaining Friendlies for Both Clubs on 2025 Asia Tour
July 30 K-League XI vs Newcastle United, Suwon World Cup Stadium, Suwon, South Korea
July 31 Arsenal vs Tottenham Hotspur, Kai Tak Stadium, Hong Kong
Aug 3 Newcastle United vs Tottenham Hotspur, Seoul World Cup Stadium, Seoul, South Korea
Team News for Both Sides
Let’s get back to Isak for a minute, the official reason he’s missing the tour is a minor thigh injury. But the real reason is obvious and it obliterates the party line. After Isak missed the friendly against Celtic, Manager Eddie Howe admitted that his star striker might not be with the club after transfer window deadline day.
“I think it’s difficult for me to give 100% clarity on any player,” Howe said.
“I’d never sit here and do that because it’s football and you never know what can happen. But Alex is happy at Newcastle. He loves the players he plays with, the staff, the team and I’ve never had any issue with him.”
Al Hilal is reportedly the front-runner to sign Isak, at this current time, but he was strongly linked with Liverpool earlier this month.
He was also even linked with Arsenal itself. So we’ll see what happens with that, but let’s shift back to Gyokeres, who will join the North Londoners on an initial €63.5 million with a further €10m in add-ons.
A lot of summer transfer window sagas are protracted, especially when it involves a striker like this, but this one was EXTREMELY TEDIOUS.
Why?
We covered that in detail here.
Paul M. Banks is the Founding Editor of The Sports Bank. He’s also the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
He currently contributes to USA Today’s NFL Wires Network. His past bylines include the New York Daily News, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune. His work has been featured in numerous outlets, including the Wall Street Journal, Forbes, the Washington Post and ESPN. You can follow him on Linked In and Twitter