I played with Alexander Isak in Spain – I have no doubts about what'll happen next at Liverpool

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James’ Park during the summer, as he trained on his own for the majority of pre-season and did not feature for Newcastle in any of their friendlies or opening games of the Premier League campaign.READ MORE: Andoni Iraola makes Antoine Semenyo January transfer claim amid Liverpool interest - 'We will talk'READ MORE: Sadio Mane admits why he really left Liverpool after considering move to Premier League rivalBelatedly granted a move to Liverpool, Isak was left playing catch-up following his disjointed pre-season with both the Reds and Sweden managing him carefully as a result.But his progress was derailed after he was forced off at half-time in Liverpool’s victory over Eintracht Frankfurt last month.Missing four matches as a result, Isak returned to the matchday squad as an unused substitute for the Reds’ 3-0 loss to Man City prior to the November international break. He then made his comeback from injury off the bench for Sweden as they lost 4-1 to Switzerland, but was left unused against Slovenia to avoid the risk of suspension.Former Arsenal defender Monreal spent two seasons as Isak’s team-mate at Real Sociedad, with the pair making 65 appearances together across the 2019/20 and 2020/21 campaigns.The Spaniard concedes it has been different for the Swede at Liverpool to date, as he continues to face scrutiny for his limited impact at Anfield against his hefty transfer fee.But having seen how good he is first-hand, Monreal is in doubt that Isak will soon score the goals to silence his critics once and for all and once again establish himself as one of the Premier League’s finest strikers.“It’s been very difficult for Alexander [Isak],” Monreal conceded to BetMGM.

“He clearly wanted to go to Liverpool at the start of the summer transfer window.“The fact it didn’t happen until right at the end meant he didn’t get a pre-season which has clearly had a big impact on his fitness.“He’s not at his top level yet and still needs minutes on the pitch to get up to that top, top level but when he gets there, I have no doubt he’ll prove he’s one of the best strikers in the Premier League.Sky Sports discounted Premier League and EFL packageThis article contains affiliate links, we will receive a commission on any sales we generate from it. I’ve seen first-hand how much quality he has and it’s just a matter of time before he shows it in a red shirt.“In my opinion, he’s a brilliant signing for Liverpool.

He needs time to get fit but when that happens, people will see what he can do. They paid a lot of money for him, but I don’t think you can say he’s a waste of money or anything like that.“When you bring in a top, top striker like Isak you are going to have to pay big money for them – I doubt that when he starts scoring 20 plus goals a season many will talk about the transfer fee.”Liverpool return to action following the international break at home to Nottingham Forest on Saturday, with Arne Slot admitting his frustration that Isak was unable to feature more for Sweden following his latest injury.“The biggest issue we’ve faced until now, and [are] still facing, is the match fitness of the players and the time they’ve missed in pre-season,” he said at his pre-match press conference.