Stefan Borson’s verdict on whether Alexander Isak has been a financial ‘disaster’ for Liverpool
Alexander Isak has endured a challenging start to his career at Liverpool after suffering a new blow.
Isak completed his £125million move to Liverpool from Newcastle United on 1 September, breaking the Premier League transfer record.
After struggling to get up to speed in the opening months of the campaign at Anfield, Isak is facing a spell on the sidelines after breaking his leg against Tottenham on 20 December.
The injury came about following a sliding tackle by Micky van de Ven, who was unable to prevent the Sweden international from getting on the scoresheet in the process.
Isak is expected to be out for a couple of months, meaning it will be late in the campaign before he returns for Arne Slot’s side.
Alexander Isak situation compared to Jack Grealish
Former Man City financial adviser Stefan Borson exclusively told Football Insider signings over £100m often end up underperforming in the Premier League.
Isak has registered just three goals and one assist in 16 appearances since joining Liverpool.
Speaking exclusively to Football Insider about the impact of Isak’s injury, Borson said: “Look, when you look at a player like Fernandes at United, the injury record is almost one of the key attractions, isn’t it? He’s actually on the field the whole time.
“Isak actually has not had a terrible injury record over the years, and he’s broken his leg. There’s nothing you can do to legislate for that. You just never know when you sign a player, right?
“That’s why every transfer over £100m over the years has strangely tended to be particularly underperforming signings in terms of value. There are loads of examples of them over the years.
“Obviously, you don’t get nothing out of these players. It’s like Grealish at City. He was an integral part of that team in that treble-winning season. It’s not been a complete disaster, but has he been good value for £100m? No, because it’s not just £100m.”
Isak has ‘lost entire season’ after Liverpool blow
Borson insisted Isak was an “enormous” signing for Liverpool as he now prepares for months on the sidelines.
“It’s not just the fee that Isak’s on,” said Borson.
“It’s all the other bits and pieces that go with it. It’s an enormous signing, and he’s going to miss now two or three months of the season.
“He’s had no pre-season. He’s going to come back. The likelihood is he’s going to offer very little this season even when he comes back.
“You effectively bought a player and you’ve lost almost an entire season of one of the most expensive players ever, but that is just the game and there’s no precise science to it.”
Liverpool beat Wolves 2-1 on Saturday (27 December) in Isak’s absence, moving them up to fourth in the Premier League table.
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