‘Causes more problems’ – Paul Merson fears Liverpool could be about to make big transfer mistake | OneFootball

Paul Merson has claimed that Liverpool could be about to inflict ‘problems’ on themselves if they end up signing Alexander Isak.

The Reds had an opening offer of £110m for the striker turned down by Newcastle at the start of August (The Guardian), but Fabrizio Romano indicated this afternoon that they’re likely to go back in with a second bid for the 25-year-old, who’s been at the centre of some dramatic developments on Tuesday.

The Athletic‘s David Ornstein reported that the Sweden international regards his career on his Tyneside as having finished, while The Times‘ Martin Hardy revealed that the forward’s place of residence in the northeast is now on the rental market.

Merson fears ‘problems’ for Liverpool if they sign Isak

Having scored 27 goals in all competitions last season (and 62 in 109 games altogether for Newcastle), the opportunity to sign a striker of Isak’s quality would seem like a no-brainer, but Merson believes that Liverpool signing him would cause more issues than it’d solve.

Speaking to Sky Sports, the pundit claimed: “If I was Liverpool, I’d be looking more for a centre-back than Isak. Arne Slot has enough options going forward without needing Isak. Hugo Ekitike looked very good against Crystal Palace. They desperately need another defender.

“I hear a lot of people saying that if Liverpool get Isak, it’s game over in the Premier League, it’s finished. I don’t see that at all. It causes more problems, if anything.

“Where does Cody Gakpo play? There’s Florian Wirtz, Mo Salah and then Ekitike. If Isak arrives, they can’t all play. Slot will have to mix things up and change things constantly to keep everyone happy, and that causes problems.”

(Photo by Stu Forster/Getty Images)

Better to have too many options than too few!

We can see the point that Merson is making, but any manager in world football would rather have a surplus of options for one area of the squad than a shortage.

It’s true that some of Liverpool’s current forwards may find it harder to start regularly if we were to sign Isak, but the reason why many clubs have such large squads nowadays is because of the ever-intensifying fixture load with which elite-level players have to contend.

The Reds will play at least 48 matches in the upcoming season, and quite possibly more than 60 if they go deep into knockout competitions, and that’s before factoring in international games for the majority the group.

Squad rotation and injury management has never been more critical than now, given the never-ending nature of the football calendar. Even a coach like Slot who tends to have a fixed starting XI will make changes from one game to the next in order to keep everyone fresh.

The potential headache of trying to fit so many forwards into the one line-up if Isak is signed, is far preferable to the worry over scrambling for options to play in attack, if Liverpool don’t sign him and if the squad is decimated by injuries.

Where we most definitely do agree with Merson, though, is that the Reds need to bring in another centre-back this month!