Alexander Isak has his first Liverpool goal, but the bigger question is still how Liverpool are using him. The £125m signing scored in his 14th top-flight appearance for the club, and that came after he had found the net 44 times in his last two Premier League seasons at Newcastle. Against Nottingham Forest, though, the first 45 minutes looked like a striker still waiting for the game to come to him: six touches, one accurate pass and zero shots.

Liverpool's problem with Isak

Joe Hart's reading on BBC was simple: "It is clear that Liverpool haven't worked out how to play with Alexander Isak yet". He added: "At Liverpool that trust just isn't there at the moment - no-one is feeling it and he isn't that central point, which is leading to him looking lost and isolated."

That lines up with the wider evidence from the early season. Liverpool have drawn their first two Premier League games 2-2, had 60% of possession against Newcastle and 70% against Forest, and still have not looked like a side getting consistent service into their new centre-forward.

Isak's own words were calmer. "That's the job ultimately as a striker [to score goals]. I am very happy to score the first one and hopefully it just keeps coming," he said after breaking his duck.

Why the possession numbers do not fix it

The issue is not just that Liverpool have the ball more often. Joe Hart said on BBC: "With the physical nature of the Premier League and with them not 100% sure on what they are doing at the moment, teams are stomping all over them."

That is where the old Bournemouth comparison matters. Last season, Andoni Iraola's Bournemouth won just four of the 19 Premier League games in which they had the majority of possession. They won nine of the other 19, and they failed to win any game in which they had more than 58.8% possession.

So the concern is not simply that Liverpool have become a possession-heavy side. It is that the habits Iraola built at Bournemouth worked better when his team were quicker and less settled on the ball, while Isak is now being asked to operate in a side that is still working through the same issues.

Steven Gerrard called the goal "big", which is fair enough, because every striker needs a first one. The harder part is turning that moment into a pattern, and Liverpool are not there yet.

Written by Jack Mercer with AI-assisted research, cross-checked against 1 outlet. How we work →