Alexander Isak will have to ‘build up gradually’ with Liverpool – Arne Slot

LAST UPDATE | 19 hrs ago

LIVERPOOL HEAD COACH Arne Slot has suggested that Alexander Isak is unlikely to hit the ground running after a disrupted pre-season, while Newcastle manager Eddie Howe says the relationship with Isak became fractured before his departure.

The British-record signing completed a £125million deadline-day move to Anfield, but his dispute with Newcastle over his entitlement to a move meant a late substitute appearance against Kosovo represented his first minutes of football since May.

Slot, who said Isak was “maybe the best striker in the world”, asked for fans to be patient with him if the 25-year-old was taken off or not brought on until late on as he tries to get him up to speed.

“I think he missed three or four months of team sessions, so now we have to build him up gradually with us playing so many games and hardly any training time, said the Dutchman.

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“That is going to be a challenge, but we have not just signed him for the upcoming two weeks, we have signed him for six years so this is what we have to keep in mind and what the fans have to keep in mind if I take him off in a certain moment or I only bring him in for a few moments. That is all for the fitness of the player.”

Isak only trained with the full squad on Friday so is likely to be on the bench for Sunday’s trip to Burnley.

The Swede has been widely criticised for his behaviour at Newcastle, failing to join up for their pre-season tour to Asia and training on his own at former club Real Sociedad before being isolated from the squad and posting on Instagram: “When promises are broken and trust is lost, the relationship can’t continue…”

After Monday’s international game he told reporters: “Not everyone has the whole picture, but that’s something for another day… I can’t control everything that is said or written but I’m glad I became a Liverpool player.”

Slot said: “I spoke to him by phone after he signed because he had to go to the national team and 99 out of 100 times I leave them for the manager they are working with over there.

“I texted him once or twice because he is new to us and I wanted to know how he did but I do have to get to know him better as a person in the next weeks.

“Although we find it very important how someone is, because we have such a great culture at this club, we mainly sign a player for his qualities.”

Meanwhile, Newcastle boss Eddie Howe has admitted his relationship with Alexander Isak became “difficult” after he went on strike in an attempt to force through his move to Liverpool.

Asked about his relationship with the man he signed from Real Sociedad for £63million during the summer of 2022, head coach Howe said: “Alex and I always enjoyed a great relationship. I loved working with him and I hope he loved working with us.

“It was mutually beneficial. We helped him become the player that he in part is today, and he helped us as a team achieve some unbelievable milestones. He was part of a very successful team.

“But to give you a bit more on that, the moment he went on strike, our relationship did change. I think that was probably a turning point in our relationship. Communication became difficult from that point onwards. I won’t go into any more detail than that.”