Alexander Isak was undoubtedly Liverpool’s biggest-name transfer in the summer.
The saga went on for months, with the links between Isak and Liverpool first emerging all the way back in June.
However, since he was on strike for the entirety of Newcastle’s pre-season and refused to play, he’s only just getting up to full fitness, which means that the Reds’ fans still haven’t seen the best of their star man yet.
This is where Hugo Ekitike comes in. The Frenchman was the first attacker to make the switch to the Anfield outfit, and to be honest, he got used to Arne Slot’s playing style straight away.
He’s arguably been the Reds’ best attacker this season, as he’s already contributed to six goals across all competitions despite not playing each game.
And, because of this, Joe Cole has stated that he thinks the Frenchman will be able to eclipse Isak’s level in the future.
Joe Cole thinks that Hugo Ekitike will turn out better than Alexander Isak ever was
At the moment, Isak is Slot’s first-choice striker at Liverpool.
The Sweden international has failed to have much of an impact at the moment despite being used as often as possible by the Merseyside outfit.
Indeed, he can be used on the left wing if needed, much like Ekitike, but with the way things have panned out thus far, that doesn’t seem all that likely.
And now, while speaking on TNT Sports’ The Breakdown: Strikers Special, former Liverpool ace Cole has shared his thoughts on Ektike’s progress since arriving at Anfield.
“I think Ekitike outplays him [Isak] over the next two years,” Cole said.
“Isak misses football games, he gets a few injuries, he’s not robust enough where he’s there every week.
“When you’ve had an injury, and you’re Newcastle’s No. 9, you might have until the second game back to get up to speed. And then you bang in your goals.
“But when you go to a big club and you come out of the team… Ekitike will come in and start banging in goals. And then the manager thinks, ‘I don’t have to take him out, we’re winning games and scoring goals’.
“I think Isak is playing within himself. He’ll score goals at Liverpool, but I just think the other player might be the better signing.”
Arne Slot needs to start trusting Hugo Ekitike more often at Liverpool
With Isak and Ekitike both joining in the summer, Liverpool have two world-class strikers to lead their attacking line.
As mentioned, Isak is the one being favoured at the moment, but in reality, it feels like Ekitike has always shone when given a chance to prove his worth.
Liverpool’s next clash is against Eintracht Frankfurt in the Champions League, and if Slot chooses against starting the Frenchman for Wednesday’s game, he’ll be digging himself a massive hole.
The fact that Ekitike played in the Bundesliga last season and the fact that he’ll have inside knowledge on the German outfit makes it feel like he’d be the far better option to help lead the Reds’ attacking line.
Others, such as Mohamed Salah, should also be rested so that Slot can figure out what he needs to change and whether some of his squad players would actually do a better job than his preferred starting XI.
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