Italian champions Napoli could have signed Alexander Isak for €8.8m earlier in his career, long before he became the star of the show at Newcastle United.
That’s according to intermediary Salvatore Bagni, who has insisted he offered the Swedish striker to the club when he was still at AIK.
Isak has been growing in stature since a €70m move to Newcastle from Real Sociedad in August 2022, becoming one of the big star signings under the club’s new ownership.
He arrived with a big reputation after getting his career back on track at Real Sociedad following early disappointment at Borussia Dortmund, scoring 44 goals and registering eight assists in 132 games for the club.
Those numbers, as well as his record of 19 goals and one assist in 33 games this season, 15 of which have come in 23 games in the Premier League, have put him in the spotlight and a potential candidate for a big sale this summer if Newcastle need to sell to balance the books.
Should he depart he certainly won’t be leaving for a small fee, and not like the one Bagni says Napoli could have had him for earlier in his career.
“I had taken the new Ibrahimovic to Napoli for an equal amount to €8.8m,” he said.
“I’m talking about Alexander Isak. The footballer played for AIK; I spoke about him with the president Aurelio De Laurentiis.
“Consider that his current market value is more than €70m. If Napoli had signed him, they would have made a monstrous capital gain.”
