Liverpool striker Alexander Isak may constantly have to deal with an injury he is suffering from, according to a worrying claim from former scout Bryan King.
The Swede has made a promising start to this season at Anfield, following a tough first year, already scoring four goals in five Premier League appearances.
Despite this, Isak still doesn’t look like the world-class striker who excelled so much for Newcastle United, even giving Virgil van Dijk some extremely tough outings.
In an interview with Football Insider, King claimed that the 27-year-old’s thigh injury continues to be a problem and has the potential to hold him back throughout his career:
“When you’ve been out with the injury he’s been out with, it’s always a worry. It’s a worry, as I’ve been saying before with [Dejan] Kulusevski and [Rodrigo] Bentancur.
“These kind of injuries, today it’s great that players can recover from them. But I look at that injury and I think back to my own – you’ve always got a little bit of a weakness in there. No matter how it’s been rebuilt or how it’s been repaired, there’s still a little bit of doubt over something that could aggravate it again.
“It’s: ‘Do I accelerate? Do I pull up quickly? Do I tackle? Do I change direction with my runs?’ All these things are going to come into a player’s head at some stage, and the thing with Isak is that his main asset was his pace. That’s what he’s got to get back.”
Liverpool must handle Alexander Isak with care
Isak’s withdrawal from international duty with Sweden is far from ideal, with manager Graham Potter explaining the striker’s situation to reporters:
“He’s got a small problem with his thigh. It’s not a big one but because of the amount of games we’ve got in a small space of time, he won’t be able to make those. Not a big one but it’s frustrating for him and obviously for us. It is what it is but we move forward with the players we have.
“It was during the game. Like anything, you sometimes get bumps and bruises in the game, you might think it’s a bit of a dead leg or something. But actually as the 24 hours, 48 hours after the game, not quite what you think.”
Isak’s setback has put an element of doubt into his involvement against Manchester City at Anfield on October 11th, in a much-anticipated Premier League clash.
While the hope is that he will be fit, it is vital that Liverpool handle him carefully, ensuring they aren’t suddenly without their record signing for a long period.
That is easier said than done, however, due to Hugo Ekitike’s continued absence and the Reds’ lack of depth at centre forward, and Andoni Iraola has a tough job on his hands juggling the issue.
Hopefully, Isak is fully fit for City, and he carries on his good form, but King’s comments are a worry, in terms of the Swede not quite ever getting his explosiveness back regularly.
