A first meeting between these sides since last season’s Carabao Cup final, and once again Alexander Isak is the talk of the Toon.
At Wembley in March, he was being celebrated for his 52nd-minute strike that proved to be Newcastle’s winner. Now he is in the middle of a stand-off with the club, following Liverpool’s rejected £110m bid for the Sweden international in the summer. There may be a bit of tension in the air at St James’ Park on Monday.
Advertisement
The dispute is one that both parties will be keen to resolve. Newcastle haven’t scored in any of their past four Premier League matches without Isak (D2, L2), despite having 47 shots and accumulating an xG of 5.57 in these games.
While Newcastle began their campaign with a 0-0 draw at Aston Villa, Liverpool hit four past Bournemouth at Anfield. Frenchman Hugo Ekitike, one of four Premier League debutants for the Reds, opened the scoring and provided an assist, helping Liverpool extend their scoring run in the league to 35 games.
As bright as they were going forward, Liverpool looked susceptible to conceding on the break. Last season, the Reds only conceded two goals from fast breaks. Against Bournemouth, they equalled that number. Manager Arne Slot said sloppy passing in midfield was largely to blame but it will give a bit of hope to Newcastle and any other team facing the Premier League champions.
Going forward, though, they look irresistible under Slot. Liverpool have now scored 90 goals in 39 Premier League games under the Dutchman – an average of 2.3 per game. That is the best ratio of any Reds manager in the top flight. For now at least, they are coping better without Isak than Newcastle.
[BBC]
