What the stats prove about Alexander Isak after his return for Liverpool vs Newcastle

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Alexander Isak will probably be pleased to have simply got his first return to St James’ Park out of the way so early into the season.The Swede was still a Newcastle player the last time Liverpool visited the North East in August last year, making Sunday the first chance for his former fans to air their frustration at his behaviour directly towards him.Isak will have been expecting that, but it still looked to visibly throw him off his game, with the Swede struggling to make his mark on an occasion he would have been desperate to score in. Isak completed 90 minutes for the first timeThe biggest problem for Isak at Liverpool has not been what he has done on the pitch so far.

Before Sunday, Isak had played 22 times for Liverpool, and had not completed 90 minutes in any of them.That changed at St James’ Park, with the Sweden international still on the pitch when Dominik Szoboszlai blasted home the equaliser in the fifth minute of stoppage time, and staying on it until the final whistle blew.READ MORE: Should Alexander Isak have taken Liverpool’s penalty v Newcastle? In that respect, hopefully his return to the place where he played the best football of his career can help kick off another fruitful chapter this season.Isak was more involved than usualAfter the match finished, many Newcastle fans took to social media to question whether Isak was usually so bad, or if Sunday’s game was a one-off.In reality, though, the response to his performance was over-egged.

Liverpool did not play to his strengths, and that needs to change, but Isak was still more involved than he ever was under Arne Slot.Photo by Michael Driver/MI News/NurPhoto via Getty Images28 touches of the ball is not enough in 90 minutes, but it was the most Isak has had in a Liverpool shirt during a match, and though only six touches came in the Newcastle box, that was again an improvement.Reds fans want to see more than the four shots Isak had, but at least two of them were on target, with one blocked and another being sent over. He also won all three of his aerial duels, suggesting that he will win flick-ons if Liverpool get pace around him to run onto them.His dribbling is one of Isak’s assets, but he did not show it on Sunday, completing zero out of three attempts, which was perhaps part of the reason why fans were not happy with his display.Overall, though, while this was an anti-climax of an ending to the saga which dominated last summer, and Liverpool fans desperately wanted to see a goal from Isak, his opening day performance can still act as a springboard to a much better campaign.