Saturday’s FA Cup quarter-final at Manchester City could come too soon for Liverpool striker Alexander Isak. But manager Arne Slot said the Swede was now in much better physical shape than before the broken leg.
Isaac, who joined the champions from Newcastle for a British record £125 million fee on September 1, picked up the injury away at Tottenham Hotspur on December 20 and returned to first-team training on Thursday after 101 days away.
The timing is good for the Reds as they prepare for a crucial end-of-season fixture across three contests, starting at the Etihad at lunchtime on Saturday and which could decide the Dutchman’s future at Anfield.
Although the striker could be on the bench, Isaac will not be fit enough to start the FA Cup quarter-finals.
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Alexander Isaac scored for Liverpool but suffered an injury against Spurs.
“No, it’s definitely too early to expect him in the starting lineup,” Slott said in his pregame press conference. “Yesterday (Thursday) he trained with us for the first time, and today (Friday) he trained for the second time in exactly 101 days.
“It will take a little bit to give him much time, but we will make sure we do the right thing in terms of strengthening him in the minutes. But it is very good to have him back on the training ground. It will be even better to have him available to play, that is for sure.”
“If he hasn’t trained, he could be on the bench, but the question is how many minutes is he ready to play? That’s another question. It’s a difficult one because we don’t play normally.
“What I mean is, it could go to overtime. So if you bring him in, it makes things more complicated. If you think he can only play 10 minutes, and we already think that, and we bring him in 10 minutes before the end of the game and then go to overtime, then of course if we have enough players to bring in another player, we can take him back out.”
“So it may take a few minutes, but let’s wait and see how he is today and how he feels about himself. After two training sessions, after 100 days, it is clear that there is no point in starting him tomorrow.”
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WATCH FREE: Highlights of Liverpool vs Brighton match in Premier League
Either way, the good news for Liverpool is that Isaac has returned from a long injury layoff and is physically “stronger” after a difficult spell at Anfield. The 26-year-old has scored just two goals in the Premier League, the second of which resulted in him breaking his leg at Spurs before Christmas.
But Slott said the player had made great strides in the meantime and was now hopeful he could get some form as they chase an FA Cup and Champions League double. United will also face Paris Saint-Germain in the quarter-finals of Europe’s top club competition.
“Rehabilitation has done a great job,” he said. “When I look at him now, I see a player who is much stronger and in a better position physically than he was before the injury.
“But when you go from the 100-day gap to the intensity of the Premier League and the final phase of the Champions League, the opposition is usually much tougher, so what should you expect realistically? It’s difficult. But I’m really, really, really happy that there’s at least a number nine behind or with Hugo (Ekitike).”
“So it’s already a positive thing and what to expect? I’ve said many times that next season, when he’s in a proper pre-season, we can probably expect more from him than we have now. But even the way he is now is already a big step forward for us compared to where we had when he was injured.”
‘It will be a huge help to have Mo in the form he has had for many years’
Slots are also confirmed mohamed salah He was due to feature for City after recovering from a muscle injury sustained in the second half of Liverpool’s Champions League last-16 tie against Galatasaray before the international break.
“Yes, he’s (healthy),” Slot said. “He trained with us yesterday, he will train with us today and he can play tomorrow.”
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Slot talks about Salah leaving Liverpool. Liverpool FC’s photo.
Salah recently announced that he will leave the club at the end of the season, and Slot hopes the Egyptian forward can now end his Reds career on a high by winning at least one trophy at the end of the season.
“I don’t think it matters to Mo whether he leaves the club or stays.” Slot added. “This is what he has been like over the last eight or nine years, he has always been at his best and that has not changed.
“Now he will eventually leave, because Mo has always given everything he has for this club while he has been here. So I wish he could give more, but that is not realistic because he has always given everything he has and he will try to do that until the end of the season.”
“And if we have Mo in the form he has been in for a number of years, it will be of great help to us until the end of the season.”
Mixed news about Alisson and Frimpong
Slot also provided a contrasting update on the goalkeeper’s fitness. Alisson Becker and right back Jeremy Frimpong A busy period ahead for Liverpool.
Brazil international Alisson suffered a recurrence of a hamstring injury during training and will be sidelined until the end of the season. But the Reds boss was more hopeful about Dutch defender Frimpong, who was substituted in Tuesday’s 1-1 friendly win over Ecuador and is expected to feature for City this weekend.
Jeremie Frimpong is receiving treatment for a hamstring injury.
“He (Alisson) will also be out for a bit longer because he won’t be taking part in the Man City game,” Slott said. “By the end of the season we expect him to be fit again.
“Yes, he (Frimpong) seems fine. He trained fully with us yesterday and will train with us tomorrow as well.”
“But he was one of the players I mentioned about the Brighton game and I think you could see in the second half that he needed to step up every three days.”
“And another interesting and difficult choice about joining the national team is how much playing time there is because of how fast the game moves. As we know, we don’t have eight right-backs available.”
Saturday, April 11th at 5pm
Kickoff at 5:30 PM
Liverpool’s remaining matches:
- Saturday April 4th: Man City (A) – FA Cup quarterfinals
- Wednesday April 8: PSG (A) – Champions League quarter-final 1st leg
- Saturday, April 11: Fulham (H) – Premier League, live broadcast on Sky Sports
- Tuesday April 14: PSG (H) – Champions League quarter-final second leg
- Sunday April 19th: Everton (A) – Premier League, live broadcast on Sky Sports
- Saturday, April 25: Crystal Palace (H) – Premier League
- Sunday May 3rd: Manchester United (A) – Premier League
- Saturday May 9th: Chelsea (H) – Premier League
- Sunday May 17th: Aston Villa (A) – Premier League
- Sunday May 24th: Brentford (H) – Premier League
