With Hugo Ekitike and Alexander Isak acting as Liverpool’s leading No. 9 options this summer, we compared the players’ strengths and styles.
Liverpool have actively sought Isak and Ekitike this summer, the latter is now set to sign for a £79 million fee including add-ons.
Despite this, the Reds’ interest in Isak remain, with Newcastle doing their best to hold onto their best player.
Seeing both strikers join Liverpool this summer would be a huge statement of intent, with Darwin Nunez departing, but how similar are they across various departments?
Ruthless attackers at different stages of maturity
In Isak, Liverpool would be signing one of the best strikers in Europe – one who, at 25 years old, is entering the prime years of his career.
Last season, the Swede scored 23 goals in the league with only Mohamed Salah (29) ahead of him, and he is the seventh-fastest player in history to reach 50 goals in the Premier League era.
A tally of 62 goals in just 109 Newcastle appearances is a superb return, and in a title-winning Reds team, he would score for fun.
At 23, Ekitike isn’t yet as polished as Isak, but his final-third statistics still highlight why Liverpool are spending big on him.
Fifteen goals in the Bundesliga in 2024/25 mean that only five players scored more than him, while eight assists were a superior amount to Isak’s six, in one fewer appearance.
That said, Isak scored with every 4.1 shots he took in the league, per FBref, while Ekitike’s conversion rate was one goal for every 7.6 shots.
Meanwhile, Ekitike’s expected goals figure (xG) of 0.66 per 90 minutes was the same as Isak’s, indicating he was more wasteful in front of goal, having scored 0.24 fewer goals per game.
This is all to be expected, though, given the rawness that still exists in Ekitike’s game.
More than just goalscorers
It is easy to see why Liverpool have prioritised Ekitike and Isak this summer, with the pair similar in terms of style.
Both are wiry footballers with pace to burn, giving them an ability to run in behind. Ekitike is just one centimetre shorter than 6’2″ Isak.
They are far more than just goalscorers, though, dropping deep and having the ability to dribble dangerously in tight areas.
The Frenchman averaged 1.6 dribbles per game in the league last season, while Isak averaged 1.2. By comparison, Nunez’s tally was just 0.3.
Ekitike is better when it comes to aerial duel wins, however, winning 46.2 percent of them, which is significantly more than Isak (32.1 percent).
Both have even been compared to Thierry Henry in their running style, with Micah Richards saying that the Arsenal legend has been impressed by his compatriot, Ekitike.
“In terms of Ekitike, I’ve spoken to Thierry about him a lot,” Richards said on The Rest is Football.
“He says he’s not a frustrating player, but one minute he looks amazing and the next minute he does not do the basics very well.”
Isak the perfect Ekitike mentor?
Liverpool fans will be dreaming of having both Ekitike and Isak in their ranks next season, during what has been one of their most active summers in the transfer market in years.
With Nunez making way, to have both available at Slot’s disposal would be a perfect outcome, and the Newcastle marksman could even be an ideal mentor to the Frankfurt attacker.
Granted, Ekitike wouldn’t necessarily be happy with a squad role, but he could learn from the Sweden international, honing his game alongside him.
Ultimately, it does still feel more likely that Isak will remain a Newcastle player for the time being, but we’re all allowed to dream!
With Florian Wirtz brought in as a world-class signing, as well as Jeremie Frimpong and Milos Kerkez bringing extra pace in the full-back positions, Liverpool feel primed to defend their Premier League crown.
Signing Isak on top of Ekitike could make the Reds Europe’s most formidable team, giving Slot two special striking options, one of whom is arguably the world’s best in his position right now.
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