'Too much is made' out of Alexander Isak's lack of pre-season, according to Jamie Carragher, as the Swede continues to struggle to life at Liverpool
Alexander Isak celebrates after scoring a goal for Liverpool
Alexander Isak ended his Premier League goal drought at the weekend
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Liverpool legend Jamie Carragher believes Alexander Isak’s issues on the pitch cannot be blamed on a lack of pre-season following the Swedish international’s move to Anfield.
The 26-year-old striker has struggled since joining Liverpool for a British-record fee of £125m. In his 11 appearances for the Reds this season, Isak has scored just twice and registered one assist.
He netted his first Premier League goal for Liverpool in their 2-0 win over West Ham on Sunday. However, what hasn’t helped Isak’s transition from Newcastle to Liverpool is a lack of sharpness.
The Swede has already missed around a month of football this season due to fitness concerns and muscle pain. Many pundits and fans have put this down to Isak missing pre-season, but Carragher isn’t buying it.
He said on The Overlap Fan Debate, brought to you by Sky Bet: “How long can you keep saying he [Alexander Isak] had no pre-season? Too much is made of it. I did a whole pre-season and broke my leg in September, so I was out for four months.
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“When I got back fit, I didn’t do a pre-season – I did a few weeks of training, played in a reserve game, and then I was back into it. I had longer off with my injury than I had in the summer.
“Of course, you need pre-season and to build your fitness – I get all that – but anyone who gets an injury during the season doesn’t get a pre-season before he comes back. It gives people too much of an excuse.”
Isak’s lack of pre-season was ultimately his own doing. The ex-Newcastle refused to play for the Magpies as he accused the club of “broken promises” while pushing for a move to Liverpool.
Had he taken part in Newcastle’s pre-season, Isak would have benefitted from six games’ worth of preparation ahead of the campaign.
The 26-year-old still hasn’t played a full 90 minutes for Liverpool. This is partly due to fitness issues, but also because Arne Slot signed another expensive striker in the summer who has so far proved the better performer.
The Reds signed Newcastle target Hugo Ekitike for £79m. The Frenchman has scored four more goals than Isak so far this season, with both forwards now battling to establish themselves as Slot’s first-choice striker.
Isak will face his former club in late January when Newcastle travel to Anfield. Eddie Howe’s side will be seeking revenge after losing the reverse fixture to a late Liverpool winner.
After scoring his first Premier League goal for the Reds last weekend, Isak told Match of the Day: “I’ve been waiting for it and chasing it [my first Premier League goal for Liverpool] and sometimes it takes longer than you expect, but happy to score a goal and help towards the win today.
“It’s never easy — as a striker you need momentum. Sometimes you go through these patches but hopefully this will be helpful towards building good form. We defended really well and scored twice so happy days.”
The goal ends Isak’s joint-longest scoring drought in the Premier League, having gone seven games without finding the back of the net for Newcastle in 2023.