Alexander Isak is set to miss a couple of months after undergoing surgery on a broken leg, though Arne Slot insists the British transfer record holder will be back before the end of his debut season at Liverpool.
Isak’s leg and ankle were damaged as he scored the opening goal in Liverpool’s 2-1 win over Tottenham on Saturday, just his third since arriving at the club from Newcastle for $175 million in September. “It’s going to be a long injury, for a couple of months,” said Slot of Isak’s injury. “That’s a big, big disappointment for him and as a result of course also for us.”
The Liverpool manager did, however, say he was “confident” that Isak would be back before the end of the season. Such a timeline suggests that the 26-year-old’s availability for Sweden’s World Cup playoffs in late March is in major doubt, beginning away to Ukraine. It also heightens the sense that year one with the third most expensive signing in history has been a borderline write-off for Liverpool, who struggled to get Isak fit after a preseason spent on strike to get out of St. James’ Park. Since joining, Isak has participated 16 times, logging just 777 minutes and scoring three goals alongside one assist.
“It’s been a really challenging and difficult period for him, I think,” said Slot. “You join a new club and usually when you join a new club you are, and he was of course, very excited and you want to show immediately all the qualities you have but that was simply impossible.”
Everybody should understand, but if you haven’t trained for three or four months on a serious level with the team and you’re playing in this league … in this league you need to be at the top of your game to impact a game of football. That took, which we all knew, months before we could bring him there because there was no preseason, there were games, games, games. We had hardly any time to train, so we always knew that it would take time, and that’s why he is so unlucky that he is now injured because I think we all saw with his goal against West Ham, with this goal [against Tottenham], that he was getting closer to the player he was at Newcastle.
Do Liverpool Need Reinforcements to Cope Without Isak?
The loss of their No. 9, alongside Mohamed Salah and Cody Gakpo, will intensify the pressure on management to strengthen a squad that, despite significant summer investment, appears light. Given the form of Ekitike and the potential imminent availability of Gakpo, who Slot rated as “50-50” to be fit for the game against Wolverhampton on December 27, Liverpool might not need a direct replacement for Isak. However, both quality and depth remain of concern for the team.
For now, Slot’s focus is on the upcoming two difficult home games. “The players who are available need to give everything they have,” Slot emphasized, while the higher-ups will need the same resolve in the transfer market. Liverpool is reportedly eyeing Antoine Semenyo, a player with an $87.8 million release clause that can be activated by January 10. Manchester United and Manchester City are also in pursuit of the Ghana international, who boasts eight goals and three assists this season. Semenyo’s versatility would be a valuable asset with current squad gaps due to injuries.
Additionally, Michael Edwards should be aware that Semenyo’s productivity is better than his expected metrics indicate. Though he scored and assisted more effectively than last season, his combined expected goals and assists have decreased noticeably from 0.4 to 0.35 per 90 minutes in the Premier League. Thus, Liverpool may explore cheaper alternatives as they did successfully before with Salah, Mane, and Firmino.
Lastly, recalling Harvey Elliott from a loan at Aston Villa, a deal that has not gone as planned, seems like a viable quick fix. Elliott, having signed on for a season-long loan with a future fee of $47.3 million, is in a precarious situation due to restrictions on loan moves under FIFA rules. “Harvey is an Aston Villa player and he should be going there for a year. If the question is about him, the best thing to ask is at Villa, who are doing quite well by the way,” said Slot, although he could provide a no-cost option for a club that might feel underprepared given their summer expenditures focused on Isak.
