Premier League champions Liverpool face Burnley on Sunday as Arne Slot’s men look to continue their 100 percent start to the new campaign, with £125million Alexander Isak now amongst their ranks after his protracted move from Newcastle
Liverpool didn’t move onto other targets. Instead they waited and they held out for Alexander Isak. There may not have been many – or any – better strikers they could have gone for but there certainly would have been easier deals to have been done.
Isak, 25, was on strike and Newcastle were refusing to entertain negotiations after turning down an opening gambit of £110m from the Reds. Liverpool had to sit out as the Magpies missed out on multiple striker targets as a search across Europe for a potential Isak replacement almost turned to farce. Yet they didn’t panic and go elsewhere. They knew they would get their man.
So the question was, apart from the obvious with his goals, why did it have to be Isak or nobody else, especially after landing Hugo Ekitike earlier in the window? It was quite simply the fact that 54 of his career goals have come in 86 Premier League appearances.
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“I think many reasons but one that maybe stands out for me is that he has already shown this in the Premier League,” said Liverpool boss Arne Slot. “I think he is the only exception we made in terms of signings, he is a little bit older than the rest – still quite young but a bit older and showed himself in the Premier League.
“We know that if he stays fit, he will be able to score goals for us.
“What he adds as well is enormous pace and he can score with both feet, with his head, all these kind of things, that he has already done this in the Premier League is of course something extra.”
Isak, who could make his debut from the bench in tomorrow’s clash with Burnley at Turf Moor, has come under fire for the way he forced his move to Anfield.
The Sweden striker refused to take part in pre-season and trained alone which forced Eddie Howe’s hand at St James’ Park. That has rightly raised questions about his attitude and character. Slot does not fear that would be the case at Liverpool, though. He believes the club is somewhere that, if the right price is met, they allow players to leave so there’s no need to force their way out.
“No, not at all,” he said. “It is not necessary at our club because we also trade players. If a player wants to leave and we get the right money for him then this club has shown for so many years now that we then do sell.
“At this club it is not necessary at all to go on strike. I think it will have the opposite effect. You can keep on training here and Harvey [Elliott] gets his transfer, Tyler Morton gets his transfer.
“There were maybe 8-9-10 players in the last window who just conducted themselves in the best possible way and we are a club that is trading so maybe write this down for every agent that has a player here, it is not necessary.
“If the right price is paid by the right club for the right player then this club has shown we always do sell because we need this to get our players in. That is different. That is a very positive thing at this club: you get your transfer if everyone is happy.”
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