Reds boss confident £125m signing is ready to deliver after stuttering start
Liverpool head coach Arne Slot has said Alexander Isak is now up to speed after missing pre-season due to his drawn-out £125m transfer from Newcastle.
Isak has featured sparingly for Liverpool since arriving on deadline day. Suffering from a lack of fitness, he has yet to play a full 90 minutes and has made just six appearances so far.
The record-signing has also scored only one goal, against Championship side Southampton in the League Cup.
But ahead of Sunday’s clash with Manchester United at Anfield, Slot said the 26-year-old is now physically ready to perform consistently.
“I think now he has had his five, six weeks of pre-season which is normal for every player, especially if you have been out for three or four months,” said Slot.
“Fitness-wise he is close to the level he should be and we can judge him in a fair way from now on.
“His pre-season has maybe finished now, he has played a few games 70, 80, 90 minutes so let’s see where he is in the upcoming weeks.”
Another player who has also struggled with fitness is midfielder Alexis Mac Allister.
Slot said: “One thing is clear is that he missed out on a lot, unfortunately. He went out [injured] immediately after we won the league and we were expecting him to be back for the start of pre-season, which he wasn’t.
“That led to the fact he wasn’t able to play three times in a row, so he went in-out, in-out 60 minutes, 45 minutes, and that is never an ideal scenario for a player.
“But like all the others he is a player who has experienced so much already in his career he will be back at the level he wants and the level I want from him.”
