Danny Murphy. Picture: BBCplaceholder image
Danny Murphy. Picture: BBC | Danny Murphy. Picture: BBC
Danny Murphy was as delighted as most Liverpool fans when Alexander Isak signed, the former Reds midfielder has one concern though.
When Isak claimed Newcastle had broken promises that he made last summer, a rebuttal from the club suggested that the new Reds no.9 was staying put until late developments opened the door for Richard Hughes to up the ante. A British record fee always seemed likely, but the £150m valuation was more of an indication of how highly the selling club rated their star asset rather than being a realistic price tag.
For a transfer that was almost inevitable, how it quickly turned sour and for the relationship between the two clubs to fracture has been an unfortunate side effect. It is a situation and awkwardness that will take some time to heal.
What has concerned Danny Murphy about Alexander Isak’s move to Liverpool
Speaking on Talksport, former Liverpool midfielder Danny Murphy couldn’t hide his excitement about the headline making deal, but was was frustrated about one aspect of the saga: “Absolutely. I mean, he's as close to the complete package that you want in a centre forward. Great link up, good feet, can run in behind, good size.
“Already got the Premier League experience. People can talk about whether anybody's worth the money that's being paid these days. But yeah, if you were to choose a centre forward looking around Europe, he'd be at the top of most people's lists.
“So I think Liverpool fans will be ecstatic, excited. The only disappointment is that the saga around it. It's not helped anyone. It's not helped a player in terms of what he's obviously been through.
“Newcastle, it's not helped them having to do business late and try and get replacements in and the drag on for them. It's not helped Liverpool because when you get a new player in of such quality, you want him to have some weeks with the lads, building up relationships, getting his fitness up and starting the season with them.”
Who was to blame for late Isak drama?
Murphy is right. Despite knowing what the player’s wishes were and that they already had to replace Callum Wilson, Newcastle didn’t help themselves or Isak. Had they managed to get at least one striker in earlier in the window, there probably wouldn’t have been the fallout that eventually led to the less than glowing departure post on social media.
It wasn’t a surprise that they needed to sign more than one striker and yet it took them months to sign Nick Woltemade and Yoane Wissa.
Isak’s self enforced absence won’t help how quickly he is able to get up to speed in terms of match fitness and the 25-year old is now at risk of injury if he and Liverpool aren’t careful. If the parties involved had been more open, Isak could easily have returned to training at least before putting pen to paper on his blockbuster deal.
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