Hugo Ekitiké has acknowledged the selection challenge that follows Alexander Isak’s Deadline Day arrival at Liverpool, but he shifted responsibility for the decision to manager Arne Slot. The club spent £125 million on the new No. 9, and the expectation is that the club’s new No. 9 will surely be Slot’s first-choice option through the middle. Ekitiké, the 23-year-old Liverpool striker, offered a calm response when asked about the reshaped attacking options while on international duty for France.

“When you play for the best teams, you inevitably expect to be competing with the best players,” he told reporters. He added praise for Isak and outlined his own approach to the situation. “Isak is a player I watched, so seeing him arrive is a pleasure. It’s going to provide tough competition, but I’m going to focus on being good and performing well so that it’s just the coach’s problem.”

Those remarks underline a pragmatic mindset: accept the competition and force the coach into making selection choices. Slot has already indicated how he might deploy Ekitiké after Isak’s arrival. “I see Hugo mainly as a No. 9 that could also play from the left or play together with another No. 9,” the Dutch boss mused earlier this summer. That comment suggested Ekitiké may be moved wider or paired up when Isak leads the line centrally.

Beyond tactical questions, Ekitiké spoke about the personal impact of his transfer. He reflected on the move to Merseyside with simple enthusiasm. “My life has changed,” he gushed.

The situation frames Liverpool’s forward line as an internal contest between two established options and places the onus on Slot to balance form, fit and personnel. For Ekitiké, the route is clear: perform well and leave the selection headache to his manager.

Alexander Isak has said that not everyone knows “the whole picture” surrounding his summer move to Liverpool, a transfer that generated heated reaction and accusations. Newcastle offered a heated response just hours later and the saga deepened after his £125 million ($169.2 million) switch when Isak was accused of intentionally dropping his performance levels in the hope of sabotaging Newcastle’s Champions League aspirations.

The striker, who has since tried to calm tensions with Newcastle, made his first appearance of the season on Monday as he came off the bench for the final 20 minutes of Sweden’s surprise defeat to Kosovo. Speaking after the game, Isak addressed the transfer controversy for the first time.

“It’s great that things were cleared up before international duty and that I could focus on playing football again,” he told local media. “It’s been a fairly new situation for me, but you always learn and develop mentally off the pitch too.

“It is what it is. It’s clear that not everyone has the whole picture, but that’s something for another day. Right now, the disappointment is about this match and how it went. But at the same time, I have a positive feeling about the club team part that is coming.

“[Fan anger] is part of football. I can’t control everything that is said or written. But I’m glad I became a Liverpool player. That’s what I wanted and I’m happy about that.

“There is a lot to discuss, and it can be discussed for a long time. It has been educational, and I’m happy with the final result. I’m happy and proud to be a Liverpool player. I don’t want to go into details or talk about that situation too much. It is a closed chapter, but I have never had any problems.”

Liverpool supporters are awaiting his club debut, but Sweden boss Jon Dahl Tomasson warned that Isak is not yet ready for prolonged minutes after a long layoff. “This was the maximum number of minutes I could give him,” Tomasson told Viaplay. “We have talked in recent days about what risks there are and what is not a risk. It is extremely difficult to take a risk.

“I want to play him every minute. You can see right away that he is dangerous and creates things. But we also need him next month, the month after that, and next year.”

Florian Wirtz has acknowledged that he is still finding his feet after a subdued beginning to life at Liverpool. The 22-year-old admitted the Premier League represents an adjustment and accepted that early expectations have made the opening weeks more challenging.

Pressure intensified during the international break when German media criticised his role in a 2–0 defeat to Slovakia. Wirtz answered those critics with a high-quality strike that completed a 3–1 win over Northern Ireland. He celebrated by pointing to his ear, a gesture that appeared to address his detractors.

After the match, RTL asked whether the move to England had taken its toll, and Wirtz offered a frank assessment. “It’s another league, another type of football,” Wirtz said of his slow start. “I’m happy to be there.” When asked if he believes he will open his account for Liverpool soon, Wirtz added: “I have no idea when I’ll score my first goal, hopefully in the next game, but it will come at some point.”

Against Slovakia Wirtz struggled when used out on the left of Germany’s attack, but he was returned to a more natural attacking midfield position for the Northern Ireland match. In that role he not only scored but created a game-high three chances and won more fouls than any other player on the pitch.

Wirtz will hope to replicate that attacking midfield influence when Liverpool resume Premier League duties away at Burnley at the weekend. That fixture will represent his fifth appearance in a Reds shirt and offers another chance to find consistency in a new league.