Liverpool’s major Alexander Isak injury update as Slot issues warning | Football | Sport

Alexander Isak could return to the Liverpool line-up by the end of next month, with Reds boss Arne Slot confident that the forward can start living up to his £125million valuation this season. Isak has been sidelined since suffering an ankle injury, which included a fibula fracture, after being tackled by Micky van de Ven whilst scoring the first goal in Liverpool’s 2-1 Premier League victory at Tottenham just before Christmas.

The Swedish international has had a challenging season following his record-breaking move from Newcastle in early September. Initially hindered by a lack of pre-season training and then a groin issue, he had only scored three goals in 17 appearances prior to his latest injury setback.

Last week, Liverpool shared photos of Isak stepping up his recovery, doing some ball work inside the gym at the AXA Training Centre.

Slot has now provided further details on the 26-year-old’s progress.

“Alex has been on the pitch, not with his football boots but with his running shoes for the first time this week, so that will take a whilst as well,” said the Reds boss.

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“It’s nice for him to go on the pitch, it’s nice for us to see him here because there is still enough work to be done, but you know, as a player, you arrive in the final stages of your rehab, and as long as you’re in the gym and not the pitch, that’s not the nicest part.

“The next step is doing work with the ball, which every player likes most. Then the next step is to come into the group and then it takes a whilst before you’re ready to play. But it’s nice that rehab goes well; that’s a compliment to him and our medical staff.”

Slot revealed Isak is targeting a comeback around the March international break, which could potentially see him feature for Sweden’s World Cup play-off semi-final against Ukraine, with the striker’s national side hoping for a final clash against either Poland or Albania days later.

“It will be around that period of time; end of March, start of April, where he is hopefully back with the group,” he added.

“It will be somewhere around there and then it’s always a question if things go really well or he gets a bit of a setback. In the gym you can hardly do too much but at this stage you constantly have to tick the next box and the next box.

“When you are back with the group that is not to say you are ready to play, let alone start a game a game of football because again he’s been out for months and the last time he was out for months we could all see it took him a whilst before he was the player who we signed from Newcastle.”

Whilst Slot feels Isak will gain from a complete pre-season in the summer, he expects the striker being able to make an impact during the final weeks of the campaign. “That’s going to be a different period to know, but we also expect a different player from the end of the season to the one we had in the first part,” Slot continued.

“That makes complete sense because I’ve said it a hundred times that we have to give him time. If a player has had four-five months of only individual training, we cannot expect he is up to speed straight away.

“So unfortunately for him and us, we haven’t used the best Alex yet but this club and our fans will hopefully see the best Alex this season but, for sure, in the upcoming years.”

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