Alexander Isak has a problem and there's no clear fix. Andoni Iraola has real work to do as Liverpool boss.
Alexander Isak scored a winner for Liverpool on Saturday, finding the net on his return to beat Brentford. It was the kind of moment that Isak was signed for - to be the decisive goalscorer in a difficult game.
No matter what, then, this was a good performance from Isak. He did his job, got the three points for Liverpool, and it's difficult to have complaints. 'Difficult' but not impossible.
This was not a brilliant display from the Swede, who struggled badly to get into the game before Brentford were reduced to 10 men. And that creates a very difficult problem for Andoni Iraola to solve.
Alexander Isak's involvement
Brentford's red card came in the rarely-seen 8th-minute of first-half stoppage time, so this was truly a game of two halves. Incredibly, Liverpool actually had the same share of the ball in each half, though - 60 per cent of it.
What changed was where the Reds had it. They improved from 11 first-half touches in the opposition box to 27 in the second half, while Brentford fell from 17 to nine.
Now, that tells a story in of itself. Brentford were on top in that first half, despite lacking possession, and were consistently getting into Liverpool's box in a way the Reds couldn't respond to.
Isak was a large part of the reason for this: he just didn't get into the game. The forward had completed two (2) passes by the time Brentford were reduced to 10 men and finished his 79 minutes having completed three (3).
There were just two shots, too, and Isak had possession just 16 times across those minutes. Only four players in the match managed fewer touches and Aaron Hickey played the most minutes of those players with a mere 19.
This is a problem. Isak does not present an out-ball for Liverpool and essentially the only way to properly get him into a game is by building the ball all the way to the edge of the box first.
That isn't an easy way to play when your squad isn't littered with players who are natural out-balls. Florian Wirtz, for instance, doesn't have a natural way to battle defenders and move the team up the pitch and he's typically the other most advanced central player.
It was best seen on Brentford's goal. Alexis Mac Allister wins the ball back and gets his head up to clear the ball. The instinct for any player here is to look for your centre-forward - there isn't the time to see if a winger has peeled away off one of the flanks, or if someone has drifted into the pocket. You search for the centre-forward and try to get him the ball.
Isak, however, was standing on his heels sandwiched between a Brentford centre-back and a Brentford defensive midfielder. It was essentially impossible to get him the ball as he didn't naturally show for it. The hosts got the ball back and quickly scored.
Liverpool just don't have a way out if Isak isn't naturally offering it. Yes, players who simply score goals are valuable but the team still needs to find a way to get up the pitch reliably.
Isak doesn't give that to the team and it's difficult to see who could with this current group, especially playing with just one centre-forward and a lightweight attacking midfielder behind him. That's a job for Iraola to solve, though, and it's one that will take considerable work.