Alexander Isak continues his recovery from a broken leg, with Arne Slot providing a fresh update on the striker’s condition.
The £125m signing has endured a difficult first season at Liverpool. After pushing hard to secure his move from Newcastle United the Swedish forward arrived without a full pre-season and required a tailored training program to regain match fitness.
Alexander Isak had previously established himself as one of the Premier League’s most prolific strikers during his time on Tyneside, scoring 54 goals across three seasons, with 44 coming in his final two campaigns.
However, injuries have disrupted his progress on Merseyside. A groin issue picked up during the 5-1 win over Eintracht Frankfurt slowed his adaptation before a major setback arrived in December.
The 25-year-old suffered a broken leg while scoring in a 2-1 victory against Tottenham Hotspur F.C. and has not played since. He is not expected to return until early next month.
Speaking on Friday, Slot cautioned that expectations should be managed when Isak returns, noting it may take time for the striker to rediscover the form that justified his record transfer fee.
“If you ask me now I would say I don’t expect [Isak to go on duty with Sweden],” the head coach says. “But we are still one and a half weeks off, there is always co-operation between club and country but I don’t expect him to play for us before that.
“Again, I have to mess up the party again. Let’s say [he comes back] at the beginning of April, he has been out for three and a half months and not trained with the team for three and a half months. The last time he did that, it took him a while to get up to speed.
“I am really, really looking forward to having him back but don’t get the expectations again so high that the minute he is on the pitch, he is at the level of what we spent that money on.”
If the absence of such a gifted striker was not already a challenge for under-pressure boss Arne Slot, it has also led to an over-reliance on Hugo Ekitike, the only recognised senior centre-forward available.
Liverpool have been working on the French forward’s fitness and his ability to maintain his performance level across 90 minutes in the physically demanding Premier League. However, the lack of a genuine alternative in attack has undoubtedly affected results.
Slot added: “I don’t think it’s been helpful for the team that many times we have felt we are there, another player got injured, another player got injured. We constantly felt we had to do it with 12-13 players.
“It is always a boost for a team to have everyone available. Look at the recent PSG game (against Chelsea), when Khvicha Kvaratskhelia came in 30 or so minutes from the end and scored twice.
“I think Pep Guardiola said as well, how important it is to have your players available because this is such a hard league, we don’t have a winter break and there are so many games.
“I don’t think there are many clubs in the history of this league who have had a lot of injuries and performed as expected. That is harder in this league than any other league in the world, as you have so many games at a high level. All the examples are there, Manchester City last season.”
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