Arne Slot told he now has two Liverpool problems surrounding Alexander Isak

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Liverpool’s 2-1 loss at home to Manchester United on Sunday has seen various players come under the microscope after a shocking result – and Alexander Isak is one of those who has not been immune to criticism.

Liverpool lost their first home Premier League game in 400 days against their long-term rivals, with Harry Maguire’s late header cancelling out Cody Gakpo’s equaliser after Bryan Mbeumo had given Manchester United the lead after just 62 seconds.

Arne Slot’s men simply weren’t at the races, trailing for the majority of the game, and it’s seen them tumble into fourth place in the league behind Arsenal, Manchester City and Bournemouth.

But whilst their defensive stars will be criticised for poor performance, it’s seen Alexander Isak criticised by Premier League striker icon Gabriel Agbonlahor, who has stated that the Swedish striker has no reason to be playing ahead of Hugo Ekitike.

Gabriel Agbonlahor says Liverpool have huge issue by starting Alexander Isak over Hugo Ekitike

Alexander Isak’s £125million British record move from Newcastle United means he’s always likely to start ahead of Ekitike, no matter the situation. However, that didn’t translate well against United.

Sofascore rated Isak at just 6.5 out of 10, stating that he missed a big chance, completing just seven of his 11 passes in 72 minutes of football, and he didn’t attempt a single dribble whilst also losing possession eight times.

Ekitike signed for £78million from Eintracht Frankfurt in the summer, but in contrast to Isak, he completed the same amount of passes in the mere 28 minutes he played as well as having only five fewer touches than his Swedish counterpart.

But it’s not the minutes on the pitch that is the issue, according to the Aston Villa hero. It’s Isak’s relationship with Mohamed Salah which has posed a problem. The two did not combine well and haven’t done so since Isak’s introduction to the starting XI.

And that has seen Agbonlahor question Arne Slot’s tactics by stating that there is a ‘problem’ at Anfield when it comes to their striking output. Agbonlahor told talkSPORT:

“Mohamed Salah’s not firing. I mean, Salah and [Alexander] Isak have got no relationship at the moment.

“Whenever Salah is wanting to put him through, he’s not making the runs.

“Then [Hugo] Ekitike is on the bench when he had been starting.

“And I think they’ve got a problem there. It just seems like it’s not working at the moment for Liverpool.”

There is definitely no question as to who has had the better start to the campaign between Alexander Isak and Hugo Ekitike.

Hugo Ekitike should be playing for Liverpool over Alexander Isak

That leaves Arne Slot with a huge decision. Ekitike was named ‘outstanding’ by Micah Richards earlier in the campaign after he had started the season in great form.

The Frenchman has four goals and assists in seven Premier League games, with a further strike in the Carabao Cup and a debut goal in the Community Shield. Isak, meanwhile, only has one goal in the Carabao Cup – the same game that Ekitike scored in – alongside an assist in the Premier League.

There’s an argument to be made that with Isak suiting Newcastle’s counter-attacking style of play, he may not translate that well into Liverpool likely having to face low blocks.

And that could see the Reds star struggle for quite a while until he is fine-tuned to their system. Florian Wirtz has been criticised for his poor Liverpool performances and Isak should be receiving the same treatment.