Arne Slot handed brutal warning over £300m Liverpool spree as Alexander Isak issue emerges

Arne Slot has been warned that he is under more pressure than ever at Liverpool after spending £300million improving a squad that cruised to the Premier League title last season.

And Slot’s Dutch compatriot Wim Kieft, the former international striker who is now a top pundit in Holland, reckons the expectancy at Anfield will rise another few notches if the Reds can do a deal to snatch £150million-rated Alexander Isak away from Newcastle before the transfer window closes.

Liverpool have already landed Florian Wirtz, Hugo Ekitike, Milos Kerkez and Jeremie Frimpong in the biggest spending spree ever seen at the club. And Kieft said: “What Slot did at Liverpool in his first year deserves applause.

“I still think it is wrong to think that Slot’s ideas and methods are head and shoulders above the visions of other managers. He has been pumping fresh blood in his team of champions with big-money signings - and he had a decent team!

“If he now succeeds in getting Alexander Isak away from Newcastle, he would have a really great number of additions. It must be wonderful for Slot that he is allowed to spend, but bringing in all these big stars means a really big amount of responsibility for him now.

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“It is clear now that this is no longer the team of Jurgen Klopp. It really is the team of Arne Slot and that allows us to really judge Slot. If he does get Isak, he really will have some team on paper.”

Liverpool travel to face Newcastle on Monday night after a summer spent trying to take the Swede to Anfield. Newcastle have insisted that the striker will not be sold unless his valuation is met in full - and Isak has angered the Toon faithful further by refusing to play.

The champions will have to cope with a red-hot St James’ Park atmosphere as well as an Eddie Howe side that will be cranked up by their manager before kick-off. Liverpool kicked off the defence of their title by beating Bournemouth last week.

But it was a performance littered with defensive errors and Kieft is unsure whether all of the new players that Slot has signed will be successful at Anfield.

He added: “We all saw how it went with Erik ten Hag at Manchester United when he found out that not every big status or big-name player can adapt to English football.

“Of course, Florian Wirtz is a fabulous player who will succeed. But Hugo Ekitike, who they took from Frankfurt, hasn’t exactly scored an amount of goals before like Isak, has he? Players like him can get a big shock when they get to know the real ferocity of the Premier League.”

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