Alexander Isak has insisted people do not have the “whole picture” in regards to the controversial nature of his summer transfer to Liverpool.
Isak went on strike to force through a move to the Reds, refusing to travel for pre-season and publicly accusing Newcastle of “broken promises” over a new contract, making it abundantly clear he did not plan to play for the Magpies ever again despite still having three years left on his contract.
Newcastle offered a heated response just hours later and the transfer saga would reach another layer of complication after his £125 million ($169.2 million) switch to Anfield when Isak was accused of intentionally dropping his performance levels in the hope of sabotaging Newcastle’s Champions League aspirations.
The striker, who has since tried to calm tensions with Newcastle, made his first appearance of the season of any kind on Monday as he came off the bench for the final 20 minutes of Sweden’s surprise defeat to Kosovo, after which Isak discussed his transfer saga for the first time.
“It’s great that things were cleared up before international duty and that I could focus on playing football again,” he told local media. “It’s been a fairly new situation for me, but you always learn and develop mentally off the pitch too.
“It is what it is. It’s clear that not everyone has the whole picture, but that’s something for another day. Right now, the disappointment is about this match and how it went. But at the same time, I have a positive feeling about the club team part that is coming.
“[Fan anger] is part of football. I can’t control everything that is said or written. But I’m glad I became a Liverpool player. That’s what I wanted and I’m happy about that.
“There is a lot to discuss, and it can be discussed for a long time. It has been educational, and I’m happy with the final result. I’m happy and proud to be a Liverpool player. I don’t want to go into details or talk about that situation too much. It is a closed chapter, but I have never had any problems.”
Liverpool fans are now eagerly awaiting Isak’s first appearance for the club, although Sweden boss Jon Dahl Tomasson confessed the towering striker is not yet fit enough to play significant minutes after such a lengthy absence this summer.
“This was the maximum number of minutes I could give him,” Tomasson told Viaplay. “We have talked in recent days about what risks there are and what is not a risk. It is extremely difficult to take a risk.
“I want to play him every minute. You can see right away that he is dangerous and creates things. But we also need him next month, the month after that, and next year.”
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as ‘The Whole Picture’—Alexander Isak Offers Cryptic Response to Liverpool Transfer Controversy.