Hugo Ekitike comes on as a substitute to replace Alexander Isak of Liverpool during the UEFA Champions League 2025/26 League Phase MD1 match between Liverpool FC and Atletico de Madrid at Anfield on September 17, 2025 in Liverpool, England. (Photo by Clive Mason/Getty Images)placeholder image
Hugo Ekitike comes on as a substitute to replace Alexander Isak of Liverpool during the UEFA Champions League 2025/26 League Phase MD1 match between Liverpool FC and Atletico de Madrid at Anfield on September 17, 2025 in Liverpool, England. (Photo by Clive Mason/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Alexander Isak made his Liverpool debut in the 3-2 victory against Atletico Madrid in the Champions League at Anfield.
Arne Slot admitted that he was positively surprised by Alexander Isak’s fitness levels during his Liverpool debut.
The striker finally made his Reds bow in last night’s 3-2 victory over Atletico Madrid in the Champions League. Isak joined Liverpool on summer transfer deadline day for a British record fee of £125 million. But because he spent the majority of the summer training alone at Newcastle United, he arrived short of fitness and was omitted from last Sunday’s 1-0 win at Burnley.
However, Isak was handed a full bow against Atletico. The Sweden international featured for 58 minutes and grew into the Anfield encounter. Liverpool’s attention now turns to one of their biggest games of the season when they face bitter foes Everton in the Merseyside derby on Saturday. And Slot has not ruled out Isak featuring from the outset.
The Liverpool head coach said: “I was positively surprised by how fit he was during that 60 minutes but that maybe, probably, tells you that it might be a difference to sign a 20-year-old from a different league or a 25 or 26-year-old that is used to playing in this league.
“Although he only trained for two weeks, he has so many games under his belt that he is probably more able to be ready for 60. But I was positively surprised how fit he was, I wasn’t surprised by his quality because that’s what we all know. You don’t have to be a manager to recognise how much quality he has. But it’s always nice to see if a player starts the way he starts, like Hugo Ekitike [who] started the same as he did. Yeah, a good start, only 60 minutes and now we have to build him up from here. But I can tell you he is not going to play 90 again on Saturday.”
Liverpool required yet another stoppage-time goal to defeat Atletico Madrid. Virgil van Dijk powered home a 92nd-minute header after the Reds had thrown away a two-goal lead courtesy of Andy Robertson and Mo Salah inside six minutes.
It’s the third time Liverpool have triumphed in additional time this term. However, Slot is sure the Premier League champions will win games more comfortably. He added: “You’re never 100 per cent sure but what I do know is we’re so fit that we’re able to push one more time. But I’m sure that we’re not going to need, every single game, stoppage time. There will be games where if we are 2-0 up after six minutes and we create so many chances afterwards that we will score the third and then we won’t need stoppage time to make a late game winner.
“And there will probably also be games where we need a goal in the last minutes and we don’t, but what I can assure you, even if we don’t score it we will try to push for it. That is the mentality this team has, but it should not only be about mentality. It’s also how fit we are, how well prepared we are throughout the last few weeks that they are able to push one last time and then in the end it is also about quality because the cross from Szoboszlai and the way Virgil heads the ball in is not only to do with mentality or being fit, that is also [about] having so much quality.
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