At the highest level, against one of the toughest opponents, Alexander Isak decided not one but two games in his side’s favor. Newcastle are off to Wembley for the EFL Cup final at Arsenal’s expense. One of the best defenses in the world, overwhelmed by Isak once more. If that is not a sign that he ranks among the very best strikers in the game, what is?
This was a tie decided by finer margins than a 4-0 aggregate scoreline might suggest. Better finishing from Arsenal in the first leg and they would have gone to St. James’ Park firmly in this tie. Better finishing in the 19th minute of the second leg and they might have quelled the Geordie faithful, perhaps even overturned the two-goal deficit and reached Wembley. Instead, Martin Odegaard hit the post seconds before Isak did the same. Both bounces favored Newcastle.
Then again, Isak’s dominance of his center backs was such that if the opener hadn’t come then he might have forced it on another moment. As Kai Havertz, manful and not without his qualities, was driven to distraction at the other end, feeding off what scraps Newcastle’s back five would allow him, Isak was making chances for himself and merry havoc for William Saliba and Gabriel. In his current form, he can do nothing wrong.
Even when Isak missed the target, it went his way. Perhaps that is just this forward’s lot right now. There will be moments when you do everything right and still can’t quite find the target. When the Swede’s hand is scolding hot, even his misses break Newcastle’s way. A powerful shot cracked the post but unlike Odegaard’s, it rebounded back into play, Jacob Murphy on hand to convert the goal that won the tie.
Isak might not have got the finish quite right but few other strikers could have even manufactured the chance for themselves. A high ball up to the Swede and Saliba was intent on battling with him. Isak was having none of it. Instead, he let his opponent get ball side of him, thrusting one of those telescopic legs in front of Saliba to whip the ball around for a give-and-go with Anthony Gordon. Two touches to get the ball under his control at pace and his shot had Raya beaten, much as he had been when bending across the Arsenal goalkeeper after breaking in behind from an offside position.
You would have to go a long way — perhaps to Ivan Toney’s trip to the Emirates Stadium in 2022-23 — to find the last time Saliba had been given so many difficulties by a center forward. The Frenchman had had a one-off moment against Erling Haaland on Sunday but was largely able to assert himself in the duels. He had no answer for Isak, who simply refused to enter the grindhouse. Subtlety of movement got the Newcastle man into the right spots to emerge with possession, and when the ball did come his way, he was able to pick a pass or carry the ball forward. Allying those qualities to his prodigious output — now 20 goals and five assists in 27 games this season — means it no longer feels unreasonable for Isak to be in a conversation over the best center forward in the world.
Saliba was not the only one struggling. Right across the pitch, it was apparent how much the invigorating 5-1 win had taken out of an unchanged Arsenal side. The tie might have been different if Odegaard had connected better with a spinning ball after Dan Burn’s foul on Gabriel Martinelli saw the ball break to the Arsenal captain. It would have been easier to fight through the heavy legs. Defeat would not have been conceded as it seemed to be when Murphy scored. That Martinelli limped off soon after with a hamstring injury could only have added to the sense that this was not going to be their night.
In such circumstances, sloppy mistakes are an inevitability. David Raya delivered just one of those, sliding the ball to an under-pressure Declan Rice seven minutes into the first half. Gordon would turn home when the ball was stolen but what was most notable was who had done the stealing. Fabian Schar had pushed up from center back, typifying just how Eddie Howe had got his tactics right in Joelinton’s absence. The extra defender did not stop Newcastle from getting bodies upfield, applying pressure and niggling at an Arsenal side that folded all too easily. Rice was lucky to avoid a second yellow late on as he charged around the pitch hunting fouls like his opponents had been red shirts.
Newcastle had got in their heads by then. It started with Isak, the man who proved to be the difference across the tie.
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