Arne Slot rebuffs Alexander Isak criticism with Erling Haaland comparison | OneFootball

Arne Slot has rebuffed criticism of Alexander Isak’s lack of involvement for Liverpool by drawing comparisons to the Premier League’s most prolific striker, Erling Haaland.

British record signing Isak is yet to prove his worth at Liverpool and only boasts two goals in 12 appearances, with it taking until last weekend for the Swede to finally notch his first Premier League strike of the season.

But unlike fellow £100m man Florian Wirtz, there have been little signs of improvement in terms of Isak’s wider play, often struggling to get involved in Liverpool’s attacking moves.

He managed just 13 touches in 68 minutes against West Ham last Sunday, followed by 14 touches in 86 minutes versus Sunderland in midweek.

While recognising that Isak and his teammates must do more to get the best out of him, Reds manager Slot does not see this statistic as a reason for criticism on its own, pointing at Manchester City striker Haaland - who became the fastest ever player to score 100 Premier League goals on Wednesday - as proof that game involvement does not necessarily correlate with goals.

"He isn't the only No 9 that suffers in some games of not getting many chances,” Slot said. “It is obvious and clear to me that we want to get him into more threatening situations.

"We have been a little more compact in the last two games and as a result, have not created as many chances as we were in the games before. It is definitely one of the things for us to improve, to get the No 9 more involved in the game and more involved in the final third.

"In this league, strikers don't touch the ball that much but a few times they do touch it, it's quite nice they finish it off.

"I have no clue what Haaland's stats are. I wouldn't be surprised if he doesn't touch the ball so many times in a game but he scores a lot. It is more important to touch the ball at the right time.

"That is the big difference between Haaland and Isak, is that he touches the ball more times in moments that matter. We, and he, have to improve, that is obvious."

Alexander Isak managed just 14 touches against Sunderland (REUTERS)

Liverpool dropped points again at Anfield as Sunderland held them to a 1-1 draw on Wednesday, with the high-flying Black Cats denying Slot back-to-back league wins for the first time since September.

But having lost three straight games by three goals before the 2-0 win at West Ham, Slot sees another game without losing as a step forward ahead of Saturday’s trip to Leeds.

"Four points out of two games is different from the last two home games we've played, in which we lost both and conceded seven goals," Slot added.

"In the last two games, we were one deflection away from keeping two clean sheets. That's a step forward if you compare it to seven goals conceded in two games. We did not concede from a set-piece, which is also important, and we got two results.

"There are positives to take, but of course we are still not where we want to be. Let that be obvious and clear."