LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND - APRIL 25: Alexander Isak of Liverpool during the Premier League match between Liverpool and Crystal Palace at Anfield on April 25, 2026 in Liverpool, United Kingdom. (Photo by Robbie Jay Barratt - AMA/Getty Images)
Alexander Isak’s first season as a Liverpool player hasn’t gone to plan. Signed as the most expensive player in Premier League history last summer, the Swedish striker has struggled to make much of an impact for Arne Slot’s side, missing much of the 2025/26 campaign through injury.
Slot has been cautious in reintroducing Isak after such a long time out, but Hugo Ekitike’s season-ending injury has changed the plan. Liverpool have no choice but to start Isak between now and the end of the campaign with the Reds still fighting to finish in the top five. The 26-year-old’s Liverpool career starts now.
Isak started against Crystal Palace on Saturday and found the back of the net. This was the striker’s first league goal as a Liverpool player at Anfield and offered hope that the Reds are finally moulding around a player not so long ago considered one of the most impactful in the Premier League.
LONDON, ENGLAND - NOVEMBER 30: Alexander Isak of Liverpool celebrates with Arne Slot, Manager of Liverpool, after scoring his team's first goal during the Premier League match between West Ham United and Liverpool at London Stadium on November 30, 2025 in London, England. (Photo by Alex Pantling/Getty Images)
“It’s really nice that he scored one because when we signed him we knew he could score goals and that’s what he showed today,” Slot said about Isak who will have even more onus placed on him for the rest of the season now that Mohamed Salah is expected to be injured for the next few matches.
“Many times this season we’ve had better chances than we had today, that’s why it’s also important to have players that can score also goals like this, because that can give you a big lift in a game. That is what we’ve missed for eight or nine months because he wasn’t available and when he was available, as we all know, he was available but wasn’t at the level he can be.”
LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND - SEPTEMBER 23: Alexander Isak of Liverpool celebrates scoring his team's first goal during the Carabao Cup Third Round match between Liverpool and Southampton at Anfield on September 23, 2025 in Liverpool, England. (Photo by Stu Forster/Getty Images)
Liverpool is a work-in-progress. Salah will depart the club this summer, meaning the Reds will start next season without the legendary right winger in the forward line. This will be a challenge to adapt to life after Salah, but the silver lining is that it will open up a number of options in the attacking third.
It’s possible Liverpool could remould the team on the pitch to accommodate Ekitike and Isak as a front two. Jeremie Frimpong and Milos Kerkez could be deployed as wing backs with a summer move for a new centre back potentially making a shift to a back three a natural way forward.
Question marks over Slot’s future are still to be addressed. There is also doubt over Liverpool’s front office with Mark Hughes linked with Saudi Arabia. This summer could be a transformative one, but Isak will have a headstart on making sure his second season is better than his debut one.
This article was originally published on Forbes.com