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Beth Lindop
LONDON — Arne Slot embraced Alexander Isak on the touchline as the Liverpool supporters launched into song. The Sweden international assumed his seat on the bench, looking like a £125 million weight had, at least temporarily, been lifted off his shoulders.
Isak’s second-half strike against West Ham United provided the launchpad for a priceless 2-0 victory that moves the beleaguered Premier League champions up to eighth in the table. And, while Liverpool had hoped the striker would be propelling the club to far loftier heights when his acrimonious, British-record transfer from Newcastle United was completed on deadline day, his first league goal in a red shirt could mark a watershed moment in his team’s season.
When the fixture list dropped back in June, few would have expected a late November trip to the London Stadium to assume such significance. And yet, after an inconceivable fall from grace had seen Liverpool slump to nine defeats in their past 12 games, Slot’s side traveled to the capital on Sunday with their campaign — and their head coach’s future — on a cliff edge.
Even after the dismal midweek 4-1 mauling at the hands of PSV Eindhoven, Slot retained the backing of the Anfield hierarchy, who have acknowledged the Reds’ summer of transition (with over £450 million spent on seven new players) as at least partial mitigation for the team’s current plight. Still, the Dutchman’s credit in the bank is not limitless and a defeat against West Ham would have had his Liverpool career veering into untenable territory.
Perhaps it was with that thought in mind that the Liverpool boss shuffled his pack against Nuno Espirito Santo’s side, making four changes to the team that started Wednesday’s Champions League humiliation against PSV and benching Mohamed Salah. Slot’s boldness was vindicated when two of those changes — Isak and fellow summer signing Florian Wirtz — combined to deliver the breakthrough on Sunday afternoon, with the latter, in particular, impressing in East London.
Wirtz arrived from Bayer Leverkusen for an initial £100 million in June billed as one of European football’s brightest stars, but he has so far failed to shine amid the rough-and-tumble of an increasingly physical Premier League. Against West Ham, though, the German international was the best player on the pitch, with his incisive pass to Cody Gakpo in the penalty area preceding Isak’s instinctive strike.
“The team played a very good game,” Slot said in his postmatch news conference. “Recently I’ve been asked a lot about individuals when maybe they’ve played a game not of their usual standards and I’ve pointed out the team every single time.
“After a very positive performance from Florian, I can acknowledge that, but I also want to emphasis the team performance was much better. We tried to create an extra midfielder, and he was very important for us to find every time that extra midfielder. He was good when he made a dribble; he was good with his one-touch passes; he played one ball to Cody which then doesn’t lead to a shot but we had many of those moments and he was part of many of them.”
Slot was also rewarded for his decision to start defender Joe Gomez at right back, with the England international teeing up Gakpo to score Liverpool’s second goal in stoppage time. The position has provided a headache for the Reds boss in recent weeks, with both Conor Bradley and Jeremie Frimpong sidelined with injury. However, Gomez — making his first league start in 11 months — added some much-needed robustness to Liverpool’s porous backline and also offered a threat going forward. Keeping him fit feels crucial to ensuring the win over West Ham is not just a flash in the pan for Slot’s side.
The same can be said for Isak, who has struggled for both form and fitness since arriving from the North East, where he spent the summer on strike in an attempt to force a move to Merseyside. Before Sunday, the 26-year-old’s sole goal for Liverpool had come in the Carabao Cup win over Southampton in September but, while it is clear the forward is still far from his best, his contribution against West Ham could be the catalyst for his top flight redemption.
“That is also a bit unfair to him,” Slot said when it was put to him that Isak’s goal had been a long time coming. “Normally, as a No. 9, in general, he plays more minutes than I have played Alex now because of the obvious reasons. Even today, I had to take him off after 68 minutes. He has played a lot of games, but in terms of minutes, not so much.
“It’s very important for us as a team that we went 1-0 and important for him because it was his third chance of this game, and I don’t think there was much more than 10 minutes left in him. To score just before you come off is important for us and him.”
Certainly, Slot will hope this weekend’s clash has provided Isak and Wirtz — alongside the rest of their teammates — with a welcome injection of confidence ahead of tough assignments against Sunderland at Anfield and Leeds United at Elland Road in the coming week.
Liverpool are not out of the woods yet by any stretch but, with just three points now separating them from Aston Villa in fourth place, these green shoots of recovery offer some hope that their season could yet be a fruitful one, even if the title remains out of reach.
After the loss to PSV, Slot was asked how he had been sleeping in light of his team’s difficult run. “Not the best,” the Dutchman admitted. It seems highly likely there will be plenty of sleepless nights ahead for the Liverpool boss as he tries to transform the Reds’ fortunes and steer the club out of crisis. But, for now at least, he can rest a little easier.
