Eddie Howe Responds to Arne Slot Calling Newcastle 'Smaller Club' Than Liverpool

Newcastle manager Eddie Howe has responded to Arne Slot's "smaller club" remark after the Liverpool boss jumped to the defence of Alexander Isak following his recent struggles.

Isak, who pushed through a British-record move to Liverpool in the summer following a lengthy stand-off with Newcastle, has made a relatively slow start to life at Anfield.

In fact, the Sweden international is still waiting for his first Liverpool goal in the Premier League, having scored just one goal in eight appearances – an effort against Southampton in the League Cup.

Unfortunately for Isak, things went from bad to worse on Wednesday, when he was forced off with a groin injury during their Champions League win over Eintracht Frankfurt.

Speaking in the aftermath of this week's European fixture, Arne Slot made some interesting comments on Isak's fitness and preparations ahead of the 2025-26 campaign.

"I don't think there's a rule that every single player has the same," he said, as seen in the above clip. "But it also depends on what he did when he didn't train with the team, and what the impact is if you go to a new club as a big signing."

"So you cannot compare," he added. "Maybe a player who hasn't trained or played in pre-season at a smaller club than if you go to Liverpool."

Unsurprisingly, Eddie Howe was asked about Slot's "smaller club" dig in his latest pre-match press conference – and he refused to bite.

"I don't think that's wise, for me to get involved in those discussions," Howe said after a question inevitably came his way about Slot's remark. "Alex is no longer at this football club, so I won't comment on it."

Asked about Newcastle's facilities in general, Howe added: "The set-up here is very good. It is not perfect, there are things to improve and grow. The owners here have developed the facilities and you can see there is building work going on."

He continued: "Hopefully, that will help us be even better in the future. But I have no complaints, we have elite athletes here, many of them, touch wood, they are managing pretty well."

Howe was also asked whether he needed to defend Newcastle's fan base following Slot's comments. "I don't feel I have to do that," he said calmly.