Hugo Ekitike and Alexander Isak are yet to start a Premier League game together for Liverpool, and Alan Shearer says the former is undroppable at the moment for the Reds
Alan Shearer reckons Arne Slot cannot afford to drop Hugo Ekitike right now. That is despite Liverpool boasting another world-class striker in Alexander Isak, who is still waiting for his maiden Premier League start.
Both forwards joined the Reds for hefty fees during the summer transfer window, yet they haven’t shared the pitch simultaneously. Isak was thrown straight into the XI to face Atletico Madrid in midweek before Ekitike returned to the starting line-up – and scored – for the 2-1 win over Everton on Saturday.
Questions remain over Slot’s tactical blueprint and how frequently the pair will feature together, but Shearer insists Ekitike has earned his place in the starting XI.
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“It’s not a bad option, is it?” Shearer said on NBC Sports. “Having said that, at the minute, there’s no way I would, if I was Ekitike, there’s no way I’d be thinking I deserve to be left out this side with the form that I’m in, the goals that I’m scoring.
“He can’t leave him out. He has to play him. So, Isak will have to be patient. He’s not 100 per cent fit yet, which he’ll be working on. But they’ve got so many options, not only with those two, but in wide positions as well.
“If things are working, fine. If it’s not, then at least he’s got the players to chuck on and try and change it. Good problems to have, if you call them problems.”
Federico Chiesa failed to secure a spot on the substitutes’ bench as Liverpool went up against Everton at the weekend. Promising youngster Rio Ngumoha was given the nod ahead of the Italian, although he remained an unused substitute.
Ekitike delivered another commanding display and finished clinically after being set up brilliantly by Ryan Gravenberch’s pinpoint pass. Shearer, however, was less impressed with Liverpool’s left-back Milos Kerkez.
Despite a solid performance against Everton, the Newcastle legend remained unimpressed.
“At the minute, we’re not seeing the same player in Kerkez, as we saw with Bournemouth,” he said. “He was free-flowing. He had the license to go and roam and get forward.
“Here, to me it seems as if he’s caught in two minds whether he’s going to go, whether he’s going to stay and help protect that with Virgil van Dijk and Ibrahima Konate.”
Liverpool are set to face Southampton in the League Cup next, with Slot expected to make significant changes to his starting XI. Isak could see more game time as he continues to regain his match fitness.
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