Arne Slot Reveals His 'Gut Instinct' on Alexander Isak's Injury Status
Arne Slot remained guarded when discussing Alexander Isak's fitness following the Liverpool striker's injury-enforced substitution during the match against Tottenham Hotspur, stating it was "not a positive sign" to witness his forward hobble off the field while emphasizing he was relying purely on instinct.
A single touch from Isak's left boot proved decisive in multiple ways. Introduced from the substitutes' bench at the interval to capitalize on Spurs being down to ten players, Liverpool's record signing required only 11 minutes to open the scoring on Saturday evening.
Florian Wirtz delivered a precisely timed through ball into Isak's path after Liverpool regained possession high up the pitch in Tottenham's territory, setting up his summer teammate for a first-touch strike beyond Guglielmo Vicario. Spurs defender Micky van de Ven had rushed across the penalty area in a frantic bid to compensate for his wayward colleague Cristian Romero. The Netherlands international missed the ball entirely but made significant contact with Isak, whose left knee seemed to buckle unnaturally as his boot remained planted in the ground beneath Van de Ven's weight.
Isak's goal celebration never materialized. The 26-year-old remained crumpled on the ground in obvious distress. Following extensive medical treatment, he required assistance from two physiotherapists to leave the field.
In his immediate post-match comments following the 2–1 victory, Slot was reluctant to offer any definitive assessment. "We must wait and observe," he cautioned. "It's too soon after the match to discuss it, but it's never positive when a player must be withdrawn."
"I have no information regarding his condition," the Liverpool manager repeated during his post-game press briefing, "but when a player finds the net, sustains an injury, and doesn't return to the field without attempting a comeback... that's typically not encouraging.
"However, I can't elaborate beyond that—it's merely intuition. No medical details to share."
Short Isak Appearance Provides Slot Encouragement
Slot hadn't yet conversed with Isak during his media obligations and was eager to emphasize the positives from his 11-minute contribution. The Dutch manager specifically noted the understanding between the club's two record transfer acquisitions.
"It's encouraging that he found the back of the net: an excellent strike, set up by Florian Wirtz," Slot emphasized. "I mentioned last week that players are improving and the squad is progressing. Once again, today wasn't flawless, particularly in the final 10 minutes, but we're collecting points while I observe the team evolving as I'd hoped."
This marked only Isak's second Premier League strike for Liverpool—he remains without a goal at Anfield—and represented Wirtz's maiden assist for a colleague in England's premier division.
The German creator hasn't been hesitant in supplying his teammates—Isak's successful effort was the 27th chance Wirtz has provided in the Premier League this campaign alone. However, the preceding 26 opportunities had all been wasted.
Isak, to be fair, hasn't been particularly culpable in this respect—though this is mainly due to circumstances. The injury-susceptible striker has managed just 435 minutes playing alongside Wirtz this season. When they'll next have the opportunity to combine depends entirely on how serious Isak's concerning injury proves to be.