Liverpool supporters will need to be patient before witnessing Alexander Isak at his peak, with Sweden boss Jon Dahl Tomasson revealing the stark truth about his current physical condition. The Reds concluded a fraught summer transfer saga by securing the £125million capture of Isak on deadline day. He represented the marquee acquisition during an exceptionally active summer for Liverpool, who invested £450m in fresh talent.
Isak netted 27 goals across all competitions for Newcastle last term and claimed second place behind Mohamed Salah in the Premier League Golden Boot contest. Whilst he eventually secured his coveted move to Liverpool, his tactics have taken their toll.
The 25-year-old downed tools at Newcastle, declining to feature for them until they fulfilled his desire to depart. He was compelled to train in isolation and missed the Magpies’ pre-season tour, leaving him significantly lacking in match sharpness.
Isak received a call-up for Sweden’s World Cup qualifiers during the international break, but remained on the bench as they secured a 2-2 stalemate with Slovenia on Friday evening. Tomasson deployed Arsenal ace Viktor Gyokeres in attack alongside Newcastle’s £55m summer recruit Anthony Elanga and subsequently clarified that Isak was never under consideration.
“We would have loved to play him, everyone would want it,” the Sweden manager revealed. “But since he only had three training sessions and no pre-season and of course no match time, the risk was too great to use him today.”
When asked if Isak could feature in the match against Kosovo on Monday, Tomasson responded: “Hopefully, hopefully, as a game changer. But we have to do the right things with him, in the long and short term.”
These sentiments were mirrored by Isak himself, who admitted his lack of fitness after signing for Liverpool. “Yeah, of course, I think that’s the ambition,” he confessed to the club website when questioned about his availability for the Burnley match post-international break.
“However, I’ve had a tricky summer where I haven’t played any games and I’ve had restricted training, so I think that’s one to judge and to analyse where I am at and how much I am ready to give. But I certainly want to play as soon as possible.”
When probed about areas for improvement, he added: “Everything. I think I have a lot to give, I think I have a lot to improve. I’m a striker but I always want to give as much as possible to the team, mainly goals but much more than that as well. So yeah, everything.”
Liverpool have triumphed in all three of their Premier League matches this season, defeating Bournemouth, Newcastle and Arsenal. However, their performances have been less than stellar and Slot will be hoping that Isak’s arrival can provide a boost when they face off against Burnley on Sunday, 14 September at Turf Moor.