Alexander Isak 'out of excuses' at Liverpool as damning verdict says it all

Liverpool striker Alexander Isak has been told that there are no excuses to be made for his current form. Since forcing his way out of Newcastle United for the Reds, he has managed to score just twice in all competitions.

Those strikes came against Championship outfit Southampton in the Carabao Cup, and against the Premier League 's 18th-placed side, West Ham .

Isak's latest appearance came on Tuesday night away to Inter Milan in the Champions League , ending without a goal yet again as the £125m man was substituted in the 68th minute, before Dominik Szoboszlai sealed an important win for Liverpool with a late penalty.

"Slot deserves credit for the formation and the system - that diamond in midfield," Danny Murphy said in praise of the under-pressure Reds head coach on talkSPORT .

"Played four central midfielders, didn't play any wingers, condensed the middle of the pitch, and when you play that system - when you've got four central midfielders on the pitch - you're gonna have good possession.

"Yes, they weren't particularly penetrative, I thought the two front boys were poor - Isak probably the poorest of the two, let's be honest," the former midfielder concluded.

Isak had arrived at Anfield following an intense transfer saga in which he experienced very little action, also nursing an injury from the back end of the 2024/25 campaign. This allowed some leeway as trained back up to fitness whilst Slot devised a strategy to incorporate his British record signing.

But, partway through December, talkSPORT host Jim White posed the question, is Isak now past the point of excuses?

"He's been fit long enough. I don't [know what's wrong], he just looks weak," Murphy bluntly responded. "He's not full of confidence, that's for sure.

"I mean, he's never been somebody who relies on his strength, he's a technical player, but he doesn't look as quick or as sharp as he did at his best. So, maybe he's suffering more than most.

"Most players have half a dozen games back, you start to see the improvement. He looks well off it."

Fellow pundit Simon Jordan added: "He's come into an environment which isn't operating at it's best, is it? So, he's suffering within the confines of it.

"But, if you're a £125m footballer that's made as much noise as he made and orchestrated the outcome he orchestrated, there's not gonna be a lot of goodwill besides the Liverpool fans towards him.

"He's got to find a way.

"We are building excuses for footballers about what they do have to endure or don't have to endure. People like me will be judging it more harshly because of the condemnation of his actions.

"There's no doubt he's a top footballer, come into an environment where Liverpool are not anywhere near [their best], they've got problems all over the field, challenges all over the place.

"It's not a surprise he isn't operating at the level one would have thought," Jordan concluded, but with an amount of hope stated: "Will he? Well, I think cream always floats to the surface.

"He will be a top player. It's just a case of everybody scrutinising every move, you have to play through it."

Murphy questioned whether Slot's new tactical set-up would be of detriment to Isak. He said: "They looked better defensively and gives them better control in games with four central midfielders - the problem is you don't get as much width for crosses and he thrives on crosses."