Newcastle United’s summer spend saw Eddie Howe splash the cash on Swedish marksman Alexander Isak, with the 23-year-old joining for a club-record fee of around £63m from Real Sociedad.
Since that high-profile switch from Spain, however, the 6 foot 4 striker has endured a rather difficult spell at St James’ Park to date due to injury, having made only six Premier League appearances in that time and scored three goals.
Although it is still early days at Newcastle for the former Borussia Dortmund starlet, there may well be a concern as to whether he can go on to flourish long-term, with pundit Stan Collymore having suggested that neither Isak – nor team-mate Callum Wilson – would be Howe’s ‘preferred forward’ for next season.
As such, there may will be frustration as to those other potential targets that the Tynesiders missed out upon during the summer, with one such figure having been Danish sensation Rasmus Hojlund.
Were Newcastle close to signing Hojlund?
The Athletic’s Chris Waugh suggested last August that the then-Sturm Graz ace was among the list of names on whom Newcastle were keeping tabs, having scored 12 goals in just 21 games across all fronts for the Austrian outfit.
Despite that apparent interest, the 6 foot 4 powerhouse – who had only left former club Copenhagen in January 2022 – was ultimately snapped up Serie A outfit Atalanta late in the summer transfer window for a fee of around €17m (£15m) – less than a quarter of what Newcastle forked out for Isak.
The two-cap hotshot had garnered such attention amid notable comparisons to fellow Scandinavian star Erling Haaland, having since gone on to further showcase that likeness with his standout form in Italy.
Is Hojlund the next Haaland?
As a towering, left-footed centre-forward who is “scary quick” – according to journalist Sacha Pisani – Hojlund undoubtedly boasts similar traits to those of the Manchester City machine.
The 20-year-old even talked up such comparisons, stating last year: “I see parallels between myself and Erling Haaland. He is fast, left-footed, tall, has a good nose for goal and is a classy finisher. His mentality is also completely insane!”
His current manager Gian Piero Gasperini has also recently spoken out about the similarities between the youthful duo, having stated following last weekend’s win over Lazio: “Hojlund has this spirit, energy, intensity, but also technical quality that is just remarkable. He still has so much margin for improvement, too. He has very similar characteristics to Haaland, not just his face”.
That 2-0 triumph at the Stadio Olimpico saw the explosive talent rack up his fifth league goal of the season for Atalanta, having also come close to bolstering his tally after showcasing remarkable speed to burst clear of the Lazio defence, only to fire his effort straight at the goalkeeper.
Such a standout moment has illustrated just why such comparisons to Haaland can be made, with the Norwegian superstar having also been lauded by Sky Sports pundit Jamie Carragher for his “blistering pace”.
Howe and co may no doubt be kicking themselves not to have snapped up such a talent on the cheap, particularly with his ‘twin’ Haaland having already taken English football by storm this season, scoring 25 top-flight goals in just over six months.
While Hojlund still has a way to go to reach such heights – with six goals and two assists in 20 games for his current club so far this term – his recent displays have certainly showcased just what the fuss is all about, and why Newcastle may harbour regrets over not bringing him to St James’ Park last year.