Before Alexander Isak went goalless last weekend against Bournemouth (1–4), the Swede had scored goals in eight consecutive Premier League matches.
However, there was no longer goal drought to talk about. Away against bottom-placed Southampton, Isak equalized on a penalty in the 26th minute.
Pursuing Salah
The penalty was arranged by the attacker himself. Joe Aribo brought down Isak in the penalty area, but it required a VAR review by the referee before he chose to point to the penalty spot.
Just four minutes later, Isak also made it 2–1. Teammate Jacob Murphy delivered a perfect pass in depth, Isak responded with an elegant reception in stride and through a clinical finish at the right post, the Swede's 17th league goal this season was a fact.
There was no hat-trick for Isak. In the 78th minute, he was substituted. By then, Sandro Tonali had already secured the win to 3–1.
With 17 goals, Alexander Isak is shadowing Liverpool's Mohamed Salah at the top of the Premier League scoring chart. The Egyptian responded with his 19th league goal for the season when the league leader won 4–1 at home against Ipswich.
Approaching goal record
Isak has a total of 48 Premier League goals for Newcastle, which means he is approaching Fredrik Ljungberg's (Arsenal and West Ham) Swedish goal record in the English top league, according to Radiosporten.
With 41 points, fourth-placed Newcastle is far behind Liverpool (53 points and one fewer match played), but the team is challenging for a spot in the Champions League next season.
Arsenal remains in second place with 47 points after a narrow 1–0 win away against Wolverhampton. Third-placed Nottingham – with Anthony Elanga in the starting lineup – fell heavily with a 0–5 loss away against Bournemouth and remains on 44 points.
