‘Normal’—Sweden Boss Offers Reason for Alexander Isak’s Slow Liverpool Start

A disrupted pre-season means Liverpool’s record signing is yet to hit top gear.

Liverpool’s record signing is still settling in. | IMAGO/Sportimage

Sweden national team boss Jon Dahl Tomasson has insisted he isn’t concerned by Alexander Isak’s relatively slow start to his Liverpool career due to the striker’s disrupted pre-season.

Isak’s summer consisted of individual training after he made it clear to Newcastle United that he wanted to leave the club. The Magpies eventually sanctioned his sale at the end of the transfer window, with the Reds paying a record £125 million ($154.2 million) fee for his services.

As a result, Isak missed the opening three games of the Premier League season off the back of a fixture-less summer. Upon his arrival, Arne Slot was keen to temper short-term expectations, suggesting that Isak was considerably adrift of full match fitness.

He’s thus been eased in by the Liverpool boss, notching six appearances and just three starts. The striker has so far scored in the Carabao Cup and assisted once, for Cody Gakpo at the weekend in defeat to Chelsea.

Sweden risk missing out on the 2026 World Cup. | IMAGO/Bildbyran

Tomasson has Isak at his disposal for Sweden’s must-win World Cup qualifiers against Switzerland and Kosovo, having handed the striker his first minutes of 2025–26 during the September international break.

The national team boss, who played 112 times for Denmark, believes Isak’s subdued start to life on Merseyside was to be expected and complimented Slot’s utilisation of him so far.

“You need six weeks in a pre-season,” Tomasson said. “First you play 45 minutes, then 60 minutes, 75 minutes and 90 minutes. Then you need another three weeks to be at your best. That’s normal.

“We can’t change the situation. I’m just happy that Liverpool are doing the same thing I would have done. You can see that with Newcastle and Yoane Wissa, who came in instead of Isak. He played international matches with Congo straight away and is now injured. He is still injured.

“That’s also a reason why we couldn’t play [Isak] so much last month. We need a good Isak this month and next month. That’s how we plan, while Liverpool have done really well.”

Six weeks have passed since Isak’s signing, so Tomasson is expecting the best of the striker to soon manifest.

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