Alexander Isak's Role in Liverpool's New Attack

Andoni Iraola knows exactly what Alexander Isak brings inside the penalty area. The Liverpool head coach is now demanding much more outside it.

With Hugo Ekitike still sidelined after Achilles surgery and Mohamed Salah gone, Isak stands alone as Liverpool’s only senior centre-forward. The Swede’s importance is obvious. So is the risk.

Last season at Anfield never really got going for him. His debut campaign was shredded by injuries: just 12 starts in 22 appearances, four goals, and only one of those after he broke his leg at Tottenham just before Christmas. This year, Iraola cannot afford a repeat.

“Alex is going to be a very important player for us this season,” Iraola said. The numbers back that up, but the coach’s demands go beyond the scoresheet.

Isak has been heavily involved through pre-season, training every day and steadily building minutes in each friendly. Iraola liked what he saw from the 24-year-old at the World Cup too, particularly his availability and fitness. That tournament has become a benchmark.

“He played a very good World Cup in terms of availability, fitness level, and I want to keep him there as much as we can,” Iraola explained. “We know his level and if we can keep him there he will score the goals and give us a lot of things.”

But this is not just about Isak finishing moves. It is about him starting them, shaping them, stretching defences so others can thrive.

The partnership with Florian Wirtz could define Liverpool’s attacking identity this season. Restored to his natural No. 10 role after being shuffled around under Arne Slot, Wirtz now has a fixed reference point ahead of him. Isak’s movement, his willingness to drop, drag centre-backs wide, and open lanes between the lines, will dictate how much space Wirtz can exploit.

“Probably my fight with him, my instructions, are more in terms of without the ball and how he can help in his position when we are with the ball so he can open spaces for other players,” Iraola said. He knows Isak will always crave goals – “he is a striker, he will want to score” – but he is refusing to judge him solely on the numbers.

That mindset will be tested immediately.

On Sunday, Isak walks into St James’ Park as the villain. His departure from Newcastle last summer, effectively going on strike to force through his move to Liverpool, guarantees a hostile reception. Every touch will be booed. Every miss will be cheered.

Iraola is not interested in the drama.

“I suppose it is always special when you play against your ex-team in their stadium – in the same way when I go back to Bournemouth you always want to do well,” he said. For him, the opening day carries its own intensity. “The first game of the season everyone will be very motivated and I think it is going to be the same for Alex.”

Behind the scenes, though, the coach knows how fragile his attacking plan is. Ekitike is unlikely to return before the new year. Recruitment is focused out wide, with Liverpool seeing a second £60 million bid for Brighton’s Yankubu Minteh rejected. That leaves Iraola juggling options and scenarios, searching for a reliable Plan B through the middle.

One name keeps circling back: Cody Gakpo.

The Dutchman has been linked, somewhat implausibly, with a move to Tottenham despite Liverpool’s thin forward line. Iraola, at least, is planning with him in mind. Under Jurgen Klopp, Gakpo often operated centrally; under Iraola, he has so far been kept wide on the left in pre-season, largely because Liverpool are short of wingers.

“In pre-season we haven't tried as we don't have enough wingers and we prioritised what we need from him in his preferred position as a left-winger,” Iraola said. The idea of Gakpo as a No. 9, though, has not been shelved. Quite the opposite.

“I have been talking to him about his minutes as a nine; he has done it before and in certain situations he could help us in the nine position.”

For now, everything still flows through Isak. His fitness, his understanding with Wirtz, his willingness to graft without the ball – they are all central to Liverpool’s early-season hopes.

On Tyneside this weekend, in front of a fanbase that once adored him and now cannot wait to see him fail, he gets his first chance to show he is more than just the finisher Iraola inherited. He has to be the fulcrum of a new Liverpool attack.