During Liverpool's negotiations with Paris St-Germain for Bradley Barcola, the Anfield hierarchy were determined not to pay more than the club-record £125m they spent on Alexander Isak last summer. When the £123m deal for Barcola is completed over the coming days, the France winger will become the 10th £100m player in Premier League history. None have cost more than Isak, so the expectation on the former Newcastle striker is understandable, to say the least.

Isak scored 44 Premier League goals in his last two seasons at Newcastle, but in an injury-plagued first campaign at Anfield the 26-year-old found the back of the net just three times in 14 top-flight appearances. For Andoni Iraola, who has drawn his first two games as Liverpool manager, a major part of success at Anfield will be the ability to get the best out of Isak, who - despite scoring - was largely ineffective in their 2-2 draw against Nottingham Forest on Saturday.

"It is clear that Liverpool haven't worked out how to play with Alexander Isak yet," said ex-England goalkeeper Joe Hart. "At Newcastle everything flowed through him... At Liverpool that trust just isn't there at the moment."

There's no point signing these players if you aren't going to use them properly and play to their strengths. There's no doubting Isak's quality - they are just at a bit of a crossroads at the moment.