Arne Slot has tried to steady the noise around Alexander Isak by reminding everyone that Liverpool signed him for the long term. He repeated the same message again this week, saying the club brought the striker in for six years and not for three months, as seen in a post shared by Fabrizio Romano on his official X account.
Check the post below:
The pressure around Liverpool’s attack has been growing after recent tight games, including the narrow escape against Sunderland, which SoftFootball covered in detail. Slot used that match as an example of why the squad still needs time to fully settle.
The Liverpool manager has gone out of his way to explain why Isak’s adaptation has taken longer than some expected. The striker arrived in September after months of tension with Newcastle, and the long standoff meant he missed pre-season entirely.
Isak has been limited to short bursts of action and has not yet been able to play with the explosiveness he showed at Newcastle. His fitness has been the key issue. Slot keeps reminding reporters that rushing him would be irresponsible. The statistics underline the slow build.
By early December he had taken only three shots on target inside the box. Slot admitted that this is not the start anyone hoped for, including Isak himself, but said it was exactly why the club planned a gradual introduction from the start.
One of the things complicating his adaptation is Liverpool’s lack of natural wide players. Injuries to Jeremie Frimpong and Conor Bradley have changed the shape of the attack, making it harder for Isak to receive the kind of service he thrives on.
Slot said the team has been forced to attack in narrower channels, which often gives defenders the advantage in low-block situations. He also pointed to the arrival of Hugo Ekitike as helpful because it reduces the pressure to overload Isak with minutes.
Inside the club, the message has been one of calm and patience. Virgil van Dijk recently spoke about the importance of supporting players who are adjusting to new roles, comments that Slot said applied perfectly to Isak. SoftFootball captured Van Dijk’s view on patience with new signings like Florian Wirtz.
Slot used that same logic, saying Liverpool will benefit more from a fully fit Isak in February than an overused one in December. The club expects Isak to be at full capacity within the next few months. Slot believes that when the striker finally reaches that point, Liverpool will see the player who scored 54 Premier League goals for Newcastle.
For now, the manager is asking for trust and for supporters to remember that some signings need time before they look like themselves again.
