How much Liverpool could have saved if they signed Alexander Isak when former player wanted them to
Liverpool finally got their man when Alexander Isak put pen to paper, but they were told to sign him years ago.
The on and off, will he or won’t he transfer saga of the summer saw Liverpool pursue then wait patiently for Alexander Isak to finally get his way in a drama that could so easily have been avoided.
Arne Slot’s new no.9 is more than just the cherry on top of a transfer cake that has had fans of every other Premier League club in meltdown, it is the sort of signing that could secure the Reds an era of dominance. The title was delivered off the back of Darwin Nunez scoring only a handful of goals which makes the prospect of Isak leading the line all the more mouth-watering.
When Liverpool were first told to sign Alexander Isak
The way that Hugo Ekitike has begun his Anfield career also suggests that there is much more depth in the key striker position, however, Liverpool could have saved themselves a lot of money if they had listened to a former player back in 2021. Speaking to Metro, Jose Enrique tipped Isak for the top whilst he was still playing for Real Sociedad and described why an earlier move should have been made.
“I love Isak from Real Sociedad,” declared the former Reds full-back.
“I think they (Liverpool) should have signed him in the summer before he signed a new deal with Sociedad. Now it will be difficult, but if they go with the right amount of money, definitely he is a player worth signing. He’s 22, a big lad, quick, strong, good one-v-one, can play on the wings, as well as a number nine, he defends. Isak is definitely perfect for Liverpool’s profile of signings.”
Newcastle signed Isak for £63m a year later, meaning the Reds could have saved around that amount if they took the plunge three years ago.
The big name players who Liverpool nearly signed
Isak isn’t the first player who was a near miss or who was recommended to the club with several high profile stars nearly making the move to Merseyside. Two years before joining Barcelona, Dani Alves had “an agreement” to join Liverpool in 2006 before the deal fell through which given his status as one of the best ever right-backs, is a sore one to take. When Bren
dan Rodgers was looking to replace Luis Suarez, Alexis Sanchez emerged as the top target only to join Arsenal and prove that Rickie Lambert and Mario Balotelli maybe weren’t the right options after all.
Roy Evans was probably the unluckiest though, he had the right player with the right profile, only for him to move to bitter rivals Manchester United and write his name into their folklore.
“I had a chance to bring Teddy (Sheringham) in, but the club policy on transfers was no players over 28,” Evans told The Anfield Wrap in 2011. “He went to play until he was 38, or was it 48!
“But we needed that experience. We had John Barnes, a bit of Rushie, but we needed a little bit more with those younger players. Teddy was a great player and knew when to party and when to play and he could have told those kids ‘This is the right time, this is the wrong time’ – that sort of help for Barnesy and Rushie might have gone down well.” It might be a few years later than Enrique might have wanted, but Liverpool at least got their man this time around.