Friday’s briefing: Alexander Isak’s Newcastle future in the balance

Doubts grew over the Newcastle future of Alexander Isak as Arsenal strengthened their backline with the signing of Cristhian Mosquera from Valencia.

Sarina Wiegman was backed by the Football Association to see out her contract and take England to the 2027 World Cup in Brazil.

Isak reportedly keen to make Newcastle exit

Alexander Isak has told Newcastle he wants to explore a move away from the club, according to reports.

Hours after Newcastle confirmed Isak was not part of the Newcastle squad travelling to Asia for pre-season friendlies due to a minor thigh injury it was reported the Sweden striker is keen to leave Tyneside.

Isak scored 23 goals last season as Newcastle qualified for the Champions League, and the 25-year-old has been linked with Liverpool in recent weeks.

The forward still has three years left on his contract at Newcastle, who he joined in the summer of 2022 from Spanish side Real Sociedad.

Gunners splash the cash again for Mosquera

Arsenal have made Valencia defender Cristhian Mosquera their fifth signing of the summer, taking the club’s spending to close to £140million.

Spaniard Mosquera joins for an initial fee of £13m – with performance-related add-ons – and is understood to have agreed a five-year deal with an option of a further year.

The 21-year-old is set to provide cover for William Saliba and Gabriel at the heart of the Gunners’ defence, but can also operate anywhere along the backline.

“It means a lot to me,” Mosquera told the club website.

“It’s an opportunity that came up and I couldn’t let it pass me by. I’m joining a historic, massive club. When you arrive here with your family, you really feel the greatness of this place.”

England confident over Wiegman future

Sarina Wiegman will remain as England boss until the conclusion of her contract, Football Association chief Mark Bullingham has said.

Wiegman has led England to their third consecutive major final with Spain – who beat the Lionesses in the World Cup final two years ago – their opponents in the Euro 2025 final on Sunday.

England are aiming to defend their Euro 2022 title and Wiegman is signed on until the conclusion of the 2027 World Cup.

Bullingham said: “(It won’t be) hard at all (to keep her). We are committed to her until 2027, she is committed to us, and we’ve obviously got a new team to support her.

“We haven’t quite started working on 2027, although some of the logistical things we’re looking at, but I know that her focus, hopefully after a success on Sunday, will shift quite quickly to 2027.”

Johnson Jets into role at the Palace

New York Jets co-owner Woody Johnson has completed his purchase of a stake in Crystal Palace.

Johnson, a former United States ambassador to the United Kingdom, joins chairman Steve Parish, Josh Harris and David Blitzer as a partner and director of the Eagles, and has also signed the Premier League’s Owners’ Charter.

“Eagles fans have demonstrated extraordinary loyalty, passion, and unwavering dedication and I am excited to meet and get to know them,” Johnson told the Eagles website.

Johnson’s arrival at Palace comes with the club in dispute with UEFA over which European competition they will play in next season after winning the FA Cup in May.

The Eagles were demoted from the Europa League to the Conference League after falling foul of UEFA’s rules governing multi-club ownership, but have submitted an appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.

Arias aiming to hit right notes for Wolves

Wolves have snapped up Fluminense forward Jhon Arias.

The 27-year-old moves to Molineux on a four-year deal, with the option of a further 12 months, after helping his former Brazilian side into the last four of the Club World Cup this summer.

Colombia international Arias, who was named in the team of the tournament in the United States, becomes Wolves’ second signing of the summer after Fer Lopez.