When Liverpool signed Alexander Isak in a blockbuster £125M deal just before the summer transfer window slammed shut, expectations were high but tempered by the knowledge the 26-year-old Swedish star had missed the entirety of his club pre-season and would take some time to get up to speed.
Now more than two months on and well into November, though, he remains a surprisingly peripheral figure for both club and country. Given the player’s talent and the fee involved, this has inevitably led to a few raised eyebrows—and the situation isn’t helped by Sweden and Liverpool both struggling.
Those in the know, though, are calling for extended patience. And few will know more about what it takes to be a successful striker at Liverpool than John Aldridge, whose 329 league goals—with 63 coming in his 104 Liverpool appearances—stand him sixth all time in the history of English football.
“It feels like we have been saying the same thing over the last three international breaks,” the former Liverpool star said of Isak’s situation. “Hopefully he can get some significant time on the pitch [with Sweden] that will help him when he returns to club level. It has been frustrating for all concerned.
“But we know why that is, it has been well documented he didn’t get any sort of pre-season. That has been the cost of doing business, but Arne Slot will be the first to say he has signed for six years not six weeks. Hopefully he can return on the right foot in time for that Nottingham Forest game this weekend.”
In his absence, fellow summer signing Hugo Ekitike has more than taken his chance and will be difficult to dislodge in the attack, but wherever and however the two strikers are deployed, the Reds will need both heavily involved and making significant contributions if this season is to be a success.
