Copyright Yardbarker
Jamie Carragher is at a loss to explain how Arne Slot can figure out one particular tactical conundrum at Liverpool. The Reds’ squad was radically overhauled during the summer with a litany of departures and new signings, with two strikers in Hugo Ekitike and Alexander Isak among the arrivals at Anfield. Whereas the Frenchman has hit the ground running with six goals so far for his new club, the £125m marksman has endured a stop-start beginning to his LFC career (scoring just once) and is currently sidelined with an injury. Carragher addresses ‘difficult’ conundrum over Ekitike and Isak Speaking on Sky Sports‘ Monday Night Football, Carragher claimed that Slot faces a ‘difficult’ task in trying to incorporate both centre-forwards into the same starting XI at Liverpool, barring a drastic change in formation. The pundit said: “Ekitike has to play now. I could totally understand it’s not easy, and this was always my reservation about buying two strikers for that much money who both play in the same position. “It’s very difficult to see a Liverpool team, or any team, get two strikers on the pitch, unless maybe you’re playing three at the back. It’s not easy to do that. “I understand trying to get Isak in the team even though Ekitike was doing well. He’s a great player, he’s [Slot] got to get him fit, and he’s also paid a lot of money for him. “My mind boggles going forward how this is going to work, but right now Ekitike’s got the shirt. He’s playing really well and it will probably do Isak a little bit of good if he’s out of the team to build his fitness up in training more.” Can Ekitike and Isak fit neatly into the same Liverpool starting XI? Right now the discussion is a moot point, with Isak sidelined for tonight’s clash against Real Madrid and at best a substitute for the Manchester City fixture next Sunday, but the dilemma could resurface for Slot after the upcoming international break. Up to now it’s been almost exclusively a straight choice between one or the other at centre-forward, although they had started together as a duo in the 5-1 thrashing of Eintracht Frankfurt a fortnight ago, the game in which the Swedish striker picked up his current injury. It’d be incredibly harsh on Ekitike to be dropped once his positional colleague is fully fit again, with the Frenchman our top scorer for the campaign so far on six goals and making by far the biggest initial impact of our summer signings. However, Isak wasn’t signed for £125m to sit on the bench most weeks, and it remains to be seen whether Slot will find a way to incorporate both of them into the same starting XI without compromising too much on a cohesive formation for Liverpool. It should be noted that Carragher’s comments aren’t a knee-jerk reaction, as he voiced similar sentiments in August prior to the Swede’s arrival at Anfield, and the dilemma continues for the Reds’ head coach. That said, the selection headache he has now is far preferable to not having any senior centre-forward to call upon and having to throw someone into such a vital position just to fill a gap.
