Alexander Isak was on target for Sweden as they opened their World Cup campaign with a 5-1 drubbing of Tunisia in Monterrey.
With the other Group F game between Netherlands and Japan ending in a 2-2 draw, it means that Graham Potter’s side are already in a highly advantageous position to qualify for the knockout rounds and maybe even earn a favourable route.
The Scandinavians were a goal to the good (through Brighton’s Yasin Ayari) before the Liverpool striker doubled their lead on the half-hour mark by capping a swift counterattacking move.
After a slack Tunisian pass was intercepted on the edge of the penalty area, a long ball was launched towards Viktor Gyokeres on the halfway line.
Isak ran in behind the Arsenal striker, who picked him out with a neat pass, and he then charged at Montassar Talbi before letting fly from the edge of the box, with a low shot which was too strong for Abdelmouhib Chamakh to keep out.
Liverpool’s number 9 later turned provder for Gyokeres and Matias Svanberg to score as Sweden ran riot, scoring more goals in this game than they managed in six matches in their qualifying group, with their passage to the finals owing greatly to the UEFA Nations League fallback.
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After an injury-ravaged first season at Anfield following his British record transfer from Newcastle last year, the 26-year-old went into this World Cup with a major point to prove, and he’s already given his new boss Andoni Iraola an exciting glimpse of what might be to come.
Sky Sports reporter Patrick Rowe wrote that Isak ‘looked sharp and confident on the ball’ against Tunisia, while BBC‘s Phil McNulty hailed a ‘masterclass’ from the striker in which he ‘looked fit and in form’.
In this one game alone, the £125m man‘s goal contributions haul was 60% of what he managed during the entire season for Liverpool (four goals, one assist), which shows how lethal he can be when fully fit and how hamstrung he was by injury problems throughout the campaign.
Sweden will almost certainly have at least three more matches to play at the World Cup, which’d give our number 9 plenty more scope to build upon his excellent outing against Tunisia and return to Merseyside freshly buoyant from his exploits in North America.
Hopefully this is the Alexander Isak we see at Anfield next season!
You can view Isak’s goal for Sweden below (from 2:02), via ITV Sport on YouTube:
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