Alexander Isak falls BEHIND Hugo Ekitike in race to Liverpool

Alexander Isak or Hugo Ekitike? Liverpool want a new striker next season and the decision appears to have taken a twist.

Anfield Watch understands that Liverpool are pushing to overhaul their attacking lineup for next season. The Reds simply don't find the current crop reliable enough - Mo Salah and Cody Gakpo aside.

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Of course, Salah could depart for another reason entirely. His contract expires at the end of the campaign and the two parties are yet to agree on a new one.

But when it comes to Luis Diaz, Darwin Nunez and Diogo Jota, the issue is reliability. Diaz has been inconsistent since arriving at Liverpool, while Jota just can't stay fit.

And then there's Nunez. The Uruguayan simply isn't the no.9 that Arne Slot wants right now - not as first choice, anyway.

The Dutchman is after someone who can stick the ball in the net with reliability and finish the mountain of chances that his team creates. There's interest in Nunez from Saudi Arabia, as first revealed by Anfield Watch, and Fabrizio Romano understands there's a very good chance that he will leave.

In fact, it would be a big surprise at this stage if Nunez was at Liverpool next season.

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Selling him would require a new striker, however. That's no easy feat as the ideal forward will cost an absolute fortune.

But that's not to say that Liverpool can't find him.

Hugo Ekitike vs Alexander Isak

There are two forwards in Europe right now who appear to tick the boxes Liverpool want: Hugo Ekitike and Alexander Isak.

Now, there can't be much doubt who the star signing would be. Isak is a phenomenon, bagging 21 Premier League goals for Newcastle United last season and 19 already this time around.

He's sensational and The Times claims there's a growing interest at Anfield.

Hugo Ekitike, however, is another incredible option who reportedly interests Liverpool. The 22-year-old has scored 13 times for Eintracht Frankfurt this season, having joined them in January 2024.

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His first half-season with Frankfurt saw a goal every 180 minutes in the Bundesliga. He's improved on that this season, with Ekitike bagging every 135 minutes.

While his numbers aren't as good as Isak's, Ekitike has a similar profile. He's tall, he wants to run with the ball, and he can finish chances in a variety of ways.

He's two years younger, too, which all clubs enjoy.

But there's another reason we think Ekitike has taken a leap in front of Isak in the race to be Liverpool's next no.9. Isak has a questionable injury record, having now picked up two in quick succession.

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As we detailed here, Isak's record in recent seasons hasn't been good and he's consistently missed time at Newcastle. While you can overlook it to a certain extent, can you at £150m?

That's the supposed asking price, as per the Mirror. Ekitike would not cost anything like that and while he hasn't got a completely clean injury record, there's nowhere near the same level of risk.

While the Frankfurt forward keeps bagging goals, we think Liverpool will be more and more tempted to go in his direction. Isak just seems more and more risky.

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