Sweden manager Jon Dahl Tomasson has fired a subtle dig at Newcastle United as he praised Liverpool for their handling of Alexander Isak. The striker joined the Reds in a British record £125m move on transfer deadline day, having essentially gone on strike at St. James' Park in order to force through a Magpies exit.

The player did not feature at all for Newcastle throughout pre-season, as he trained alone for the majority. As a result, he went nearly four months without playing before making his return for Sweden during the September international break.

Isak was left unused for his nation's World Cup qualifier against Slovenia, before featuring as a 72nd minute substitute in their 2-0 defeat to Kosovo.

OPINION

Since then, he has made six appearances for Liverpool - with four of those coming from the start - but with the Reds managing his...