Arne Slot addressed the ongoing debate over Liverpool’s striker options, giving his thoughts on balancing Hugo Ekitike and Alexander Isak.
Liverpool extended their unbeaten start to the Premier League season with a 2-1 win over Everton at Anfield today.
Ryan Gravenberch opened the scoring inside 10 minutes, before Hugo Ekitike doubled the lead midway through the first half.
Everton rallied after the break, with Idrissa Gana Gueye pulling one back, but the Reds held on to secure another valuable three points.
Slot admitted the scheduling made things tougher:
“The first half performance. We always knew how difficult it was going to be, three games in seven days, early kickoff on Saturday. You can also see how much impact this has. The first half when we were fresh, unbelievable in how we played. The second half, you have to give credit to Everton but you could see we were losing energy.”
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Slot clears up striker debate
After the match, Slot was asked about the supposed selection headache between Ekitike and Alexander Isak.
The Dutchman dismissed the idea entirely, insisting that both players are important and that having options is a strength, not a problem.
“There’s no headache at all. These two players are very happy we have them both. Both of them know it’s very hard for them to play three times 90. Hugo is 21, 22 and comes to a new intensity league. You can see the ones who are used to that — Virgil, Ryan, Mo. But for the new ones you can see that’s harder.”(via TNT Sports)
On Isak, Slot was clear about his fitness situation:
“Alex is far from ready to play 90. We are trying to bring him there as long as he stays fit. It’s nice that you can ask me this question about any position.”
Ekitike’s goal underlined his growing importance, while Isak’s gradual integration highlights Liverpool’s careful approach to player management.
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