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Liverpool risk blowing their Premier League title chances if they bank on landing Alexander Isak and fail, Jamie Carragher has warned.
The Anfield legend has urged the Reds to urgently consider a plan B and believes their firepower up front is too shallow.
Liverpool had their £110 million bid rejected, and Newcastle aren’t willing to sell, yet Carragher believes raising the offer to £130m is too steep.
Liverpool scored four goals against Bournemouth on the season’s opening night, but Carragher is concerned that Arne Slot relies on just three ‘elite players’: Mohamed Salah, Hugo Ekitike, and Cody Gakpo. However, Federico Chiesa, Rio Ngumoha, and Jayden Danns are eager to challenge his view.
Carragher wrote in his Telegraph column: ‘Today, it is Eddie Howe’s crisis. It could be Arne Slot’s soon.
Liverpool’s Premier League title aspirations might falter if they miss out on Alexander Isak without securing an alternative plan, Jamie Carragher has asserted.
They only have three ‘top-class operators’ up top in Mohamed Salah, Hugo Ekitike, and Cody Gakpo, Carragher believes
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‘Slot won’t reclaim the title with just Salah, Gakpo, and Ekitike as pure forwards. They can’t shoulder the goal-scoring duties alone; Liverpool needs at least one, ideally two, additional elite players upfront, especially since Salah will participate in the Africa Cup of Nations in December.
‘Liverpool must be decisive. It can’t be “Isak or no one.” Whatever their contingency plan is, they should consider implementing it [early next week].
‘I certainly would like the Swedish striker at Liverpool, but not at any price. The notion that the initial £110m bid for Isak is ‘unreasonable’ is out of touch. If Liverpool spends more than £130m, it’s excessive. You’d expect Kylian Mbappe for such a sum.
‘From the moment Isak made his debut against Liverpool at Anfield, he has stood out, but there are concerns. Now 25, he is yet to prove he has the durability of Salah. He has failed to start 36 league games over his three seasons in England and 10 of his last 44 league goals were penalties. He would not be taking them at Anfield.
‘There is absolutely no justification for Isak’s refusal to play for the club who are paying his wages. No matter how ambitious he is, or what promises he perceives to have been broken, the idea of a professional footballer being paid thousands a week and telling his employer he will not work is unacceptable. The lack of self-awareness of anyone acting like this is beyond my comprehension.’
As things stands, Newcastle do not look like budging. They would ideally want two quality strikers through the door before selling Isak.
They submitted an improved offer of £40m for Brentford’s Yoane Wissa on Wednesday but that was rebuffed within a couple of hours.
Isak missed Newcastle’s season opener against Aston Villa – a 0-0 draw where they bled dry of end product – and has not even been training with his team-mates.
He suggests that Isak has relied on penalties to boost his scoring numbers and that he has not proven his longevity
For £130million, Liverpool should expect to be signing somebody of Kylian Mbappe’s ilk, says Carragher
The Liverpool legend says there is ‘no justification’ for Isak’s refusal to play for Newcastle
Liverpool and Arne Slot began their title defence with a 4-2 win over Bournemouth at Anfield
Liverpool have consistently hit the mark with their transfers – they are anything but blinkered under sporting director Richard Hughes – but Carragher’s concerns hold weight.
The Premier League champions have scarcely been linked with another attacker this summer and could find themselves with ground to make up if they move late for another.
In a bombshell statement on Tuesday night, Isak accused Newcastle of ‘broken promises,’ an accusation which Toon dismissed and one which has made them double down on keeping him.
But Daily Mail Sport revealed what that could be in the latest edition of our Liverpool Confidential column, which you can read here.
