SINGAPORE - Newcastle United's players are professionals who will not let ongoing speculation linking striker Alexander Isak with a move away from St. James' Park affect their focus as they prepare for the Premier League season, manager Eddie Howe said.
Isak, who bagged 23 league goals last season, only behind Liverpool talisman and Golden Boot winner Mohamed Salah (29), was left out of Newcastle's squad for their pre-season tour of Asia.
The 25-year-old, capped 52 times for Sweden, joined Newcastle from Real Sociedad in 2022 and has since netted 62 times in 109 appearances across all competitions.
After Newcastle's 3-2 defeat by Arsenal in Singapore on Sunday, Howe told reporters the tour was "business as usual" for the players.
"You don't get a chance when you come on to these tours to think of anything other than training, the next game, the level is so high that even in these games we have to be very well prepared," he added.
"We have to try and be at our best. So naturally, I think we're going to miss a player of Alex's quality and the group are going to feel that. There's no denying that.
"And I can't sit here and claim that they (the players) won't. But they're a very professional group of players and they're doing brilliantly as far as I can see in terms of managing the situation."
Newcastle, who qualified for Champions League football after finishing fifth in the Premier League last season, are next in action against a K-League XI in South Korea on Wednesday.
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