It would be easy to say that this is becoming a season to forget for Liverpool, but Arne Slot’s Reds have in actual fact sunk so low that this wretched campaign will be seared into the fanbase’s memory for years to come.
The Premier League champions have lost nine of their past 12 matches in all competitions, including twice at Anfield in a space of just five days. This is beyond concerning: this is a calamity.
For all the mitigating circumstances at the Merseyside club, there is simply no excuse for the lack of fight and intensity that fans have watched all too often since the summer, Liverpool having established themselves as title winners and broken the summer spending record.
Alexander Isak is the most expensive player in British history, joining Liverpool from Newcastle United for £125m on deadline day.
His only goal since joining came against Southampton in the Carabao Cup. The Sweden striker has not integrated well, though it’s not exactly easy to dovetail into this current Liverpool side.
He needs more support, and that’s why sporting director Richard Hughes is surveying the market for a new wide forward to replace Mohamed Salah.
Why Liverpool want to replace Mohamed Salah
Salah’s struggles this season must be viewed through a wide and balanced lens. The 33-year-old has been wildly out of sorts, but he’s ageing, grieving the passing of his teammate Diogo Jota and playing a tweaked role now that Liverpool have signed big-money strikers.
Taking all this into consideration, he’s still struggling to perform to the expected level. This is perhaps why Liverpool are gearing up for winter bid for Bournemouth’s versatile forward Antoine Semenyo, who has a £65m release clause.
But should Liverpool be aiming higher? After all, they need to land an elite winger who will succeed in rekindling Isak’s world-class quality.
Well, they may have found their man in Bayern Munich’s Michael Olise, with Spanish sources suggesting that Liverpool are prepared to fight for the 23-year-old’s signature next summer.
Olise joined Bayern from Crystal Palace in 2024 and has since staked his claim as one of the most exciting forwards in the business. Vincent Kompany’s side know this and will demand a staggering €140m (equating to £122m) sum for his sale.
Arsenal and Manchester United are also keen, so Hughes had better roll up his sleeves.
Why Liverpool should sign Michael Olise
It might have been an unhappy return to English shores for Olise this week as his Bayern team were beaten 3-1 at the Emirates, but the right winger still caught the eye, completing three dribbles and winning eight duels.
A fully-fledged member of Didier Deschamps’ France set-up, Olise has proven himself across a range of different levels, and now he is ready to take the baton from Salah and become a superstar at Anfield.
Should Salah find a purple patch within him once again, the fact remains that his £400k-per-week contract expires at the end of next season, and Liverpool are somewhat short of options on that flank.
The two could cohabit on Liverpool’s attacking flank next season, and Olise has the athleticism and output to ensure Isak reminds everyone that he is “the best striker in the Premier League”, as he was hailed by Jamie Carragher for his form with Newcastle during the 2024/25 campaign.
Olise ranks among the top 1% of attacking midfielders and wingers across Europe’s top five leagues over the past year for assists and shot-creating actions, the top 4% for progressive passes and the top 7% for successful take-ons per 90, data via FBref.
Harry Kane is a very different type of number nine to Isak, but the Sweden international’s more energetic and mobile playing style might actually give rise to Olise’s finest creative qualities.
Indeed, Isak is fast and furious, skilful on the ball. His ability to split lines open with cleverly-timed runs would play into Olise’s playmaking.
Hailed as “one of the best wingers in the world” by podcaster Henry Swain, Olise would be taking Salah’s place on the right, whereas Isak is tussling for a starting berth with Hugo Ekitike, who also joined Liverpool this summer.
Should the Reds succeed in adding Olise to their ranks, he has the potential to become their star forward. This is quite a claim, Isak, Ekitike and Florian Wirtz are among the attacking options at Slot’s disposal, after all.
But it’s the truth. Here is a player whose proven ability across so many different areas underscores his quality. He is artful on the ball and combative and physical when he needs to be. Isak might have proven himself in front of goal in the Premier League, but his start to life on Merseyside shows that he has weaknesses within his game.
25/26
5 (4)
0 + 1
24/25
34 (34)
23 + 6
23/24
30 (27)
21 + 2
22/23
22 (17)
10 + 2
Olise, after all, has recorded 62 goal contributions from only 74 matches for the German giants, and that after enjoying a talismanic role at Selhurst Park with Palace.
Toward the end of the 2023/24 campaign, Carragher spoke on Sky Sports of Eberechi Eze and Olise’s brilliance for Oliver Glasner’s Palace. He said those Eagles would fly high at top clubs in the Champions League.
The pundit was right. Olise is a superstar, and given his Premier League and European experience, his flair and gusto, he would be the perfect right-sided forward to take Salah’s place and combine with a striker like Isak to fire Liverpool back into the ascendancy – and keep them there.
But given his potential to succeed Salah, and unenviable task if ever there was one, Olise might even prove a better deal than Isak, whose success perhaps runs counter to Ekitike’s own long-term ambitions at the front of the Anfield ship.
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