After a wayward shot, spectacularly mocked and abused as a "rat"! Liverpool FC star experiences sheer horror at the start of the Premier League
Liverpool striker Alexander Isak was given an extremely hostile reception on his return to former club Newcastle United, as expected.
Long before Isak took the kick-off in Sunday's Premier League opener, more than 50,000 fans inside St James' Park let rip with a prolonged, piercing chorus of boos. The forward, who stayed on for the full 90 minutes, heard them all afternoon.
Then came the second flashpoint in the 2-2 draw, and the jeers grew even louder. In the 69th minute, with Liverpool 2-1 down, Isak found himself with a decent sight of goal from 16 metres but completely miskicked with his weaker left foot and sent the ball well over the bar. The Newcastle fans behind the goal instantly sprang up in wild celebration and cheered the miss by their former favourite as loudly as if their own side had scored.
Isak chased goals for Newcastle from 2022 to 2025, but last year he forced his way out and in a sense went on strike his way to Liverpool. Shortly before the end of the transfer window in summer 2025, the move finally went through after weeks of wrangling, with the Reds paying a fee of 145 million euros for the Swedish striker.
Newcastle fans viciously abused Alexander Isak when the team bus arrived
Sunday brought Isak back to his old stomping ground for the first time, and he is no longer welcome there at all. As Liverpool's team bus pulled in, a large group of Newcastle fans had already gathered to hurl abuse at the 26-year-old, calling him a "rat".
He could not offer any kind of sporting response to the hostility. The striker was largely anonymous and barely produced a meaningful moment. "If you see that, it’s nothing at all. He has to at least get a shot away. They had him under control. One can only hope for him that it gets better," former Germany goalkeeper Rene Adler, working as a TV pundit for Sky, said in a pointed assessment of Isak's display as early as half-time.
So far, his efforts to push through the move to Liverpool have not paid off for the Sweden international either. Having arrived short of training, he made a sluggish start to life at Anfield. Shortly before Christmas, Isak then suffered a fractured fibula and was sidelined until mid-April, leaving him with a sobering record of just four goals and one assist in 23 appearances for the Reds.
Still, even without a goal from Isak, Liverpool at least limited the damage at the start of the new Premier League season, as Dominik Szoboszlai rescued a point in stoppage time with the penalty he converted to make it 2-2. Newcastle had twice taken the lead through Anthony Elanga (5th minute) and Joe Willock (57), while Cody Gakpo had levelled at 1-1 in between (55).
