Alexander Isak Faces Hostility on Liverpool Return to St James’ Park

Alexander Isak hadn’t even reached the main doors of St James’ Park before the hostility hit him.

The Liverpool striker, back on Tyneside for the first time since his stormy £125million switch to Anfield last September, was met with a wall of noise as he darted from the team coach to the stadium entrance. “Rat” rang out from the home support, a pointed welcome for a player they once adored.

It didn’t stop there. During the warm-up, every movement drew jeers, every stretch and sprint accompanied by another round of abuse. Isak allowed himself a brief, knowing smile as the boos rained down when he disappeared back into the tunnel before kick-off. He knew this was coming. Newcastle’s fans were determined to make him feel every second of it.

So when Liverpool named him in the starting XI, it felt almost provocative. A deliberate show of faith, perhaps. Or simply a reminder that this was their record signing, and they intended to use him. Inside the stands, the first half became a soundtrack of X-rated chants. Every time Isak touched the ball, the decibel level soared.

On the rare occasions he actually did get on it, that is.

Liverpool never found any rhythm going forward before the break, and Isak cut an increasingly lonely figure up front, starved of service and space. One of the loudest roars of the opening 45 minutes didn’t come from an attack, but from a decision. When referee Stuart Attwell waved away what looked like a foul on Isak, leaving the forward raging on the turf, the home crowd celebrated the non-call like a goal.

The pattern barely shifted after half-time. Isak continued to toil, chasing lost causes, trying to knit together attacks that never quite formed. Then, at last, a chance. Cody Gakpo slipped him in, a rare clean sight of goal. The response from the away end was hopeful; from the home end, anxious.

Isak’s shot ballooned high and ugly. St James’ Park erupted again, this time in gleeful derision.

For new Liverpool head coach Andoni Iraola, the message could hardly be clearer. Unlocking Isak is non-negotiable this season. This was a stark reminder of how Arne Slot, hampered by the Swede’s lengthy absences, never truly managed to do it last term. The talent is obvious. The output, right now, is not.

Florian Wirtz is supposed to be the main supply line, the player who turns possession into chances for Isak. He ran, he pressed, he tried to knit things together, but his influence faded quickly. By the time he was withdrawn midway through the second half, his afternoon had drifted into frustration rather than authority.

One box Isak did tick: he stayed on the pitch. For the first time as a Liverpool player, he completed the full 90 minutes. When the big moment finally arrived for the visitors, he was still out there, watching Dominik Szoboszlai step up and bury a dramatic late penalty to snatch an equaliser.

The noise turned again. As the final whistle blew and the stands began to thin, those who remained made sure Isak heard them one last time as he walked off, the abuse following him down the tunnel and into the night.

This was not the return he wanted. It was not the statement Liverpool had hoped their record signing would make on his old stage. But the season has only just begun, and the question now is simple: how long can a £125million striker wait before he starts to look like one?