Alexander Isak will not play the full 90 minutes, says Liverpool boss Arne Slot

LONDON – Liverpool manager Arne Slot has hinted that Alexander Isak is ready to make his debut for the team but will definitely not play a full game, as he prepares for their Champions League opener against Atletico Madrid at Anfield on Sept 17.

“There is definitely a chance because he is in the squad,” he said of the Swedish striker, who was signed on transfer deadline day but was left out of the squad in last weekend’s

1-0 win over Burnley

.

“Then there’s a chance to play. It’s 100 per cent sure that he will not play 90 minutes.

“It’s already a Champions League game to look forward to and it’s a chance he could play tomorrow.”

On whether Isak would start, he gave nothing away but added: “The only thing that is sure is he will not play 90. All the rest we will see.

“(His challenge is) getting fit after missing out on four months of proper team sessions.

“At the moment, Alexander is fit, then it’s getting match fit, playing 90, then playing three times in a week.”

Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk, who spoke before Slot, hailed Isak as a “complete striker”.

“Hopefully he will score a lot of goals. Work hard and enjoy being the No. 9 for Liverpool and be important for the group with goals, assists and link-up play,” he said.

All the attention has been on Isak in the build-up to the match, while at the same time the Reds will be boosted – or not – by setting another record over the weekend.

Slot’s men had to wait till the 95th minute to break down a stubborn Burnley defence in their Premier League clash, before Mohamed Salah scored the decisive penalty.

With that, the English champions became the first Premier League side to clinch four straight wins thanks to winning goals in the last 10 minutes.

How long can Liverpool ride on their luck remains to be seen. Slot will know that there are issues to be sorted out, but will also be buoyed by his team’s perfect 12 points as he turns his focus to Europe.

“Everybody has focused on us winning games late on but that has a lot to do with the teams we have faced,” he said.

“If you play Premier League it’s the same quality in Champions League or a little step up.”

On Atletico, Slot believes that it will be as tough as playing against teams in the Premier League.

“Atletico has done so well in La Liga over so many years under Diego Simeone, been able to win the league and get to the final of the Champions League,” he said.

“It’s a difficult team to face because of their mentality.”

The Reds lost in the last 16 last season to a well-drilled Paris Saint-Germain, who went on to lift the Champions League trophy for the first time in the French giants’ history.

Slot will seek to improve on that and the Dutchman will be hoping for a quick start.

Liverpool have won their last 14 home games in Uefa competition, across both the Champions League and the Europa League, while scoring two or more goals in the most recent 13 of those matches.

However, the task will not be easy as Atletico are a difficult team to break down. They have kept clean sheets in 42 per cent of their Champions League games with Simeone in charge – the most of any Spanish team to play more than 50 games in the competition under a single coach.

But Simeone’s men have opened the La Liga season with just one win, two draws and a defeat and are coming into this clash a little short on confidence even though they beat Villarreal 2-0 over the weekend.

Atletico will also miss star forward Julian Alvarez, who is ruled out after a knee injury in that match.

“Alvarez is a fantastic player so he will be a miss,” added van Dijk.

“But Atletico is a very dangerous team still with great players and a fantastic manager. We have to be at our best tomorrow. I’m already ready for anything.”

In their head-to-head record, clashes have been fierce and tight. Across six meetings in the Champions League, Liverpool and Atletico have won two each.

Their most recent encounters in the 2021-22 group stage saw Liverpool win home and away, scoring five goals to Atletico’s two.