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Liverpool head coach Arne Slot speaks at today's press conference

With baited breath - and against both their better judgement and experience of asking Arne Slot such questions - the collective media, which included the Liverpool ECHO at the AXA Training Centre on Thursday afternoon, braced themselves for an update on Alexander Isak.

Given Liverpool saw an offer of £110m rejected at the start of the month before seeing the wantaway Newcastle United striker refuse to play, continue to train on his own and then, after being left out of the Premier League opener at Aston Villa, release an explosive statement on social media suggesting his time at St James' Park is at an end, some might have expected Slot to have a reply lined up his sleeve.

But in the same way he continued to fend off weekly questions around Mohamed Salah, Virgil van Dijk and Trent Alexander-Arnold's respective contract situations last season, the Reds head coach played the straightest of bats to the Isak topic and the prospect of a potential British record transfer.



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"What I can tell you is not a lot!" he replied.

"And if someone else asks the question it is going to be the same answer.

I could even impact the game Friday with the players I had on the bench, Federico [Chiesa] came in and scored a goal, so it would be much nicer to talk about the players I have, but I understand [you have to ask]."

Pushed further to offer some sort of update from Liverpool's end, Slot added: "I don't think [it will be a busy end to the window], because [that would mean] I would be unhappy with the squad and I am happy with the squad we are having.

"I say two players for each position is ideal but sometimes less is more so you are not disappointing players.

I am happy with the squad but if we think there is a player who can really make us better then this club has always shown they can bring them in.

"But it needs to be everything we want: right transfer fee, right position and the player wants to come to us." Two outta three ain't bad, as someone once said.

Where Isak is concerned it is at least the right position.

The Reds are in need of another forward having sold Luis Diaz to Bayern Munich for £65m and Darwin Nunez to Al Hilal for around £45m, before further draining the pool of frontmen by allowing Ben Doak to depart to Bournemouth in a £25m deal.

And when it comes to Isak's winning to come to Anfield, he could hardly have made his desire to move more clear given his antics in the last month or so.

This is very much not the way he would have liked to have engineered his exit but clearly it's a case of needs-must now for the 25-year-old as the final week of the window nears.

The right transfer fee, though?

That remains someway away.

An offer of £110m was turned down with the Magpies widely reported to be seeking closer to £150m and while a compromise in the middle was thought of as being the magic figure by those connected to the North East club in recent weeks, the genuine bombshell from Isak on Tuesday night does not yet appear to have made a dent in the resolve of Newcastle's owners, who, if a reminder was necessary, are the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia.

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The questions will continue to be fired at both Slot and Eddie Howe before a resolution is finally reached.

But the main one, for now, remains just where Isak will be when the September 1 deadline passes.

Liverpool have two of the big three 'conditions' - to quote Newcastle themselves - ticked off in their pursuit of Isak.
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