Liverpool welcomed Hugo Ekitike to the squad on Thursday as he jetted in for training in Hong Kong.
The Reds made Ekitike their fourth major signing of the summer, and he wasted no time in flying out to meet his new teammates.
It remains to be seen whether the Frenchman will be involved as Liverpool take on AC Milan on Saturday, but he is seemingly fit and available if Arne Slot chooses to use him.
With Liverpool still taking on reduced media duties following the death of Diogo Jota earlier this month, we have not heard too much from Slot and his players while out in Hong Kong.
However, that changed briefly on Thursday, when cameras followed Ekitike’s introduction to his new teammates.
And with smiles and handshakes all around, Slot even cracked out a brilliant joke at the expense of Ibrahima Konate.
Arne Slot backs Hugo Ekitike to get goals for Liverpool
Although there is excitement over Ekitike‘s arrival, fans are already turning their attention to the chances of Liverpool signing Alexander Isak.
If Isak does arrive it will be fascinating to see how Slot plans on using both he and Ekitike in the same team. There is surely a plan there.
In the meantime, the Liverpool head coach is clearly banking on the former Eintracht Frankfurt star finding the net for his new team.
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As Ekitike made his way around the Liverpool squad on Thursday, microphones picked up Slot joking that he finally had a French player who could score a few goals.
“As you see, we have a new player, so we’re hoping the first Frenchman who can score goals for us!” laughed the Dutch coach, in a not-so-subtle dig at Konate.
How many goals will Ekitike score for Liverpool?
There has been real intrigue amongst Liverpool supporters over the possibility of Isak and Ekitike playing together next season.
While the Sweden international would clearly be the main man having arrived for a British record transfer fee, Ekitike and the value he can add should not be overlooked.
The France U21 star scored 22 goals for Eintracht last season. He clearly knows where the net is.
A similar figure for Liverpool next season would be excellent, although if he can manage somewhere in the 15-20 mark that should go down as a very good first campaign.
With Luis Diaz and Darwin Nunez likely to leave, and Jota tragically no longer with us, Liverpool will lose 33 goals from the team of last term. Between Ekitike and Isak, that should not be a problem to cover.
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