Newcastle United fans will no doubt be watching Alexander Isak’s relative struggles at Liverpool with interest.
While Isak has already scored for his new club, it would be fair to say that things are yet to click for him.
The former Newcastle United striker has bagged only one goal in 312 minutes of action for the Reds, who have lost three games in a row heading into the October international break.
Given the nature of Isak’s exit from St James’ Park, it’s not hard to imagine at least some Toon supporters enjoying his slow start to life at Anfield. A lot of that will be down to his sharpness, with Liverpool fans having previously criticised Isak’s match fitness.
It should, however, come as a warning.
- Who is Yoane Wissa? Newcastle United’s £55m Alexander Isak replacement
Yoane Wissa will be in the exact same position as Alexander Isak
That’s because Yoane Wissa will surely be in a similar position to Isak when he finally returns to action.
Like Isak, Wissa did not conduct anywhere near a full pre-season as he pushed to leave Brentford.
Arne Slot has suggested that Isak isn’t fully fit yet. He still hasn’t completed 90 minutes for the Merseyside giants, and it’s hard to imagine Wissa being in a healthier position when he returns.
The Reds boss, speaking before Saturday’s loss to Chelsea, said: “I said to him the difficult thing is you will have your appearances but if you add minutes together it probably won’t be more than two 90 minutes.
“That’s what we inherited from his situation at Newcastle. We knew this before so it’s not an excuse.”
Wissa will not play for Newcastle before November after having suffered a knee injury while playing for DR Congo in September. The last time he played in the Premier League was way back in May.
That is a long time out of elite-level football and the idea of him being fully up to speed when he finally takes to the field as a Newcastle United player seems remote at best. Isak’s situation is proving that a lack of pre-season can cost players, even if it’s only on a reasonably short-term basis in the grand scheme of things.
Sadly for the two strikers, the controversial nature of their behaviour will cost them during the early part of their careers at new clubs.
How many games Yoane Wissa could miss for Newcastle United this season
The 29-year-old has already missed all seven of Newcastle’s games since he signed for the club at the start of September.
Following the recent update on his fitness, he seems certain to miss five games as well.
Even when he is fully fit, Wissa will almost certainly be heading to AFCON with DR Congo in December.
That runs until January, meaning he could be absent for a further eight games if his country reach the final.
The very worst-case scenario is that Wissa misses 20 games for Newcastle United this season.
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