“The next Isak” could be Newcastle’s perfect upgrade on Wissa & Woltemade

It was January last year that Jamie Carragher lauded Alexander Isak as the “best striker in the Premier League“, the Swede subsequently going on to fire Newcastle United to Carabao Cup glory just a matter of months later.

He looked unstoppable, formidable at the time, the former Real Sociedad man giving rare sleepless nights to the likes of Gabriel and Williams Saliba.

Fitness and injury woes have reduced Isak to a shadow of that player since his record £125m move to Liverpool, however, while for the Magpies, the succession plan certainly hasn’t gone smoothly.

For differing reasons, 2025/26 ended on a bum note for both Yoane Wissa and Nick Woltemade – can they be revived under Matthias Jaissle’s watch?

Who Newcastle’s starting striker should be this season

It said a lot of Newcastle’s errant recent spending that Eddie Howe turned to young Will Osula in the latter stages of last season, despite the fact that the 23-year-old had looked almost certain to depart last summer.

The Dane did at least repay the faith of his manager, scoring seven times in just 24 Premier League outings, while ranking second in the division in terms of goals per 90, behind only the prolific Erling Haaland.

Maybe Osula should be the preferred pick heading into the new season, although the aforementioned Wissa did look sharp in the recent pre-season clash with Valencia, netting twice following his return from World Cup duty.

The former Brentford man had scored three times in North America, including against Portugal, having perhaps found his groove again after a disrupted debut campaign at St James’ Park.

Indeed, it’s easy to forget that the 29-year-old had ended his final season with the Bees with 19 league goals to his name, having hardly been afforded much of a chance to replicate those heroics after starting just once in 2025/26.

As for Woltemade, well, the German’s rampant start was not maintained, shuffling back into something of a midfield role under Howe as he scored just one top-flight goal in 2026.

The Englishman didn’t seem to know how to utilise him, but Jaissle might, not least due to his connection with Woltemade’s former Stuttgart boss, Sebastian Hoeness.

There should well be enough for Jaissle to work with, if that trio stay on board, although if the new man is looking for the next version of Isak, it might take another trip to the market.

How Newcastle could finally replace Isak

There had been prior, somewhat fanciful links to free agent Dusan Vlahovic earlier in the summer, although the Serbian now appears set to join Turkish side Besiktas, following his exit from Juventus.

Vlahovic seemingly won’t be heading to Tyneside, but might be United States star, Folarin Balogun, amid reports that Newcastle are in the mix for the Monaco man’s signature.

As per Wednesday’s print edition of L’Equipe, there is mounting interest in the former Arsenal striker, with both the Magpies and Tottenham Hotspur believed to be in the mix.

It is said that Spurs have already opened talks, having accelerated their pursuit of the 25-year-old, although the north Londoners could well face competition from Newcastle, among others.

Said to have a price tag of around €60m (£52m), Balogun wouldn’t necessarily break the bank, with there certainly wisdom in the Tynesiders ramping up their own interest in the coming days and weeks.

Of course, Balogun’s profile has been raised somewhat following the saga surrounding the suspension of his red card at this summer’s World Cup, the England-born striker miraculously allowed to play against Belgium despite his dismissal against Bosnia.

A phone call from Donald Trump to Gianni Infantino seemingly had no bearing on the decision…

REUTERS/Dylan Martinez

Balogun, rightly, should be judged more so on what he’s delivered on the pitch, having certainly looked lively prior to that, notably netting a brace in the 4-1 win over Paraguay.

That had come after a stellar season for the Hale End graduate with Monaco, as he scored 13 goals in Ligue 1, more than Wissa and Woltemade recorded combined in the Premier League (nine).

He hasn’t quite come close to the 21-goal haul he managed while on loan at Reims back in 2022/23, but injury has been a factor there, with a fit and firing Balogun certainly a fearsome prospect.

In the view of analyst Spencer Mossman, he is among a list of strikers who could be considered “the next Alexander Isak“, so close to mirroring the Swede if he could just leave those nagging injury issues behind.

In Mossman’s view, there is a “30-goal season number nine somewhere in there”, with the hope being that he can replicate Isak’s heroics in a Newcastle shirt, as the latter man scored 44 league goals across his final two seasons at St James’.

Balogun isn’t at that yet level as yet, but he might well get there, with there also plenty to like about what he offers out of possession, having registered four assists and created eight ‘big chances’ in Ligue 1 last time out.

REUTERS/Blake Dahlin

In Wissa’s case, the DR Congo striker registered just one apiece, while for Woltemade, the elegant marksman registered just three assists and created only five ‘big chances’.

On the Champions League front, Balogun’s tally of five goals in ten outings last season also bettered what the Newcastle pair recorded combined (two), with it easy to see why he could well be the perfect upgrade.