Newcastle United can afford most things. What they cannot afford, with their limitless ambition bound by financial spending rules, is to get it wrong when it comes to club-record signings. At £60million, Alexander Isak was beginning to feel more miss than hit.
At the time of the deal, in August, sources in Spain said that Newcastle had overpaid for the Sweden striker. They pointed to his return of just six league goals for Real Sociedad during the previous season. In the seven months since, those doubts had taken on an air of surety - had Newcastle made a mistake?