Eased!! Arne Slot confirms Liverpool plan for Alexander Isak

Liverpool manager Arne Slot has revealed Alexander Isak will be eased into action as he told the club supporters the forward will be treated carefully in the upcoming weeks.

Isak moved to Anfield on deadline day for a British record transfer fee, and the transfer brought an end to a long, drawn-out saga that had lasted 55 days. The Sweden international didn’t feature for Newcastle during the pre-season and missed their first three Premier League games of the season.

He also trained alone from the main group, and Slot has warned Reds supporters that it will take time for his new recruit to get up to speed.

Alexander Isak of Liverpool during a training session at AXA Training Centre. (Photo by Nikki Dyer – LFC/Liverpool FC via Getty Images)

Slot said: “First of all, the Swedish manager Tomasson deserves a big compliment because he gets maybe the best striker in the world and needs him for his country but understands that playing him might result in injuries, so he took care of the player and he deserves a big compliment for that.

“We will treat Alex the same, so don’t expect 90 mins every week, he missed pre-season and team sessions, so we have to build him up gradually.

“But that will be a challenge, but we have signed him for six years, so this is what the fans have to keep in mind if I bring him in.

“In football, there’s always criticism, sometimes they cheer for us; after the League Cup, they were happy with him, in other moments, you get criticised. This is part of his life, my life, and now he is a player for us.”

Isak joins an attacking line-up that includes Mohamed Salah, Florian Wirtz, Federico Chiesa, Cody Gakpo and Hugo Ekitike.

And asked about his options, Slot said: “If you question the first time I’ve had that as LFC manager, then the answer is no.

“Diogo (Jota), Darwin (Nunez), Lucho (Luis Diaz), those who are no longer here. Jurgen could do this in the past too, changing the game with options when needed.

“The players are fit, I think so. We trained today with most of them for the first time this week. Curtis Jones got injured in the last game, so he will not be available for the game against Burnley, but everyone came back without a problem.

“That is not always the case. We are happy they are fit, so a big compliment for Sweden manager and a few others, Ryan Gravenberch only started one game for Netherlands.”

Isak joined Newcastle in a £60m move from Real Sociedad in 2022 and scored 27 goals in 42 appearances across all competitions last season.