Emile Heskey: Isak Would Be Massive Success At Liverpool; Wirtz Great Value

Former Liverpool striker Emile Heskey has backed Alexander Isak to be a huge success at Anfield if he joins the club from Newcastle before the transfer window closes.

Isak is determined to force through a move to the Premier League champions, who had a £110m bid rejected for the Sweden striker in the first week of August.

The Magpies, 4/1 on football betting sites for a top-four finish this season, are now searching for a potential replacement, but their two offers for Jorgen Strand Larsen have been turned down by Wolves.

Heskey, who will represent Liverpool at the Manchester Masters on September 5, believes the two clubs will eventually strike a deal for Isak and that he will be adored by the Reds faithful.

In an exclusive interview with Gambling.com, Heskey said: "I think they [Newcastle and Liverpool] will come to some agreement. It's disappointing how it's actually played out, but it probably works in both teams' favour that they come to some agreement. 

"The reality is, as a club, if you've got a contract with a player - you hold the ace. So I don't blame Newcastle at all. They have to try and get the best they can out of their asset."

Swede A Dream Signing

Heskey scored 60 goals in 223 appearances in just over four seasons with the Reds, winning the FA Cup, League Cup and UEFA Cup in the 2000/1 season.

Having experienced what it is like to be a Liverpool player, Heskey expects the former Real Sociedad striker to prove a big hit with the fans if he completes his move which he believes will be a success.

He said: "The fans are going to love you. One of the best things about Liverpool fans is they love and get behind their players. 

"I know he's gone now, but look at [Darwin] Nunez. There was a lot of pressure on him to score goals, but the fans got behind him, sang his name, and made him very welcome whenever he was on the pitch. 

"And they're always like that. They'll always get behind you as long as you work hard and produce.

"I've got no doubt that he [Alexander Isak] will produce. He'll be fantastic if he eventually comes."

Reds Striker Light

Despite signing Hugo Ekitike in the summer, Heskey thinks Liverpool need one more striker in their ranks - even if Isak joins the club.

"They do need someone else. The reality is, you always need two strikers that challenge each other, because you push each other to try and be better," he said.

"We played with two up front, so we had five in my time [at Liverpool]. You're always pushing each other because you're at the biggest club in the world and you've got to be challenged all the time. You've got to be challenged to push yourself to do better and do more and more.

"So having someone that pushes these players is key in each position. If you get complacent, that's when bad things can happen. But I definitely think there's room for one more forward."

Hugo The Boss

Heskey has been impressed by what he has seen from Ekitike in the first few games of the season and thinks he will prove a torment to opposition defences.

"He has done really well. You can see the potential, and he's still a young lad. He's still very raw in that sense, but he's fantastic," Heskey said.

"He's a dribbler. He's a runner with the ball, so he wanders a lot. You'll see him on the left wing as a striker and you'll see him on the right wing as well. And you think, what's he doing out there? But he likes getting on the ball. He likes running at players. 

He added: "He likes creating, he likes dragging defenders out of their preferred positions to try and then go and attack them. So I like that. 

"It's a bit different to just having a focal point like [Erling] Haaland. He'll stay central. Everything works around him and people are running around him, but Ekitike likes to run. He likes to run at players as well. So I like what I see."

Wirtz A Snip 

Liverpool spent a club-record £100m on Bayer Leverkusen midfielder Florian Wirtz which could rise to £116m with add-ons, but Heskey has no doubt the German will prove value for money.

He said: "100%. Even in the games that I've seen, I've seen enough.

"Yes, he is going to have to take his time, or, we [Liverpool] have got to give him time, because, coming into the Premier League, everyone forgets that it’s fast and furious. You come in from a different league where it's very different, and then they have to speed up. 

"We [the Premier League] are 100 miles an hour nearly all the time. We see it when we play in Europe, how we really trample over teams at times, because of the intensity that we play at.

"And then we expect players to come in and find that intensity straightaway. We're probably one of the leagues where you can actually tackle still, where you're allowed to tackle. 

"So it’s dealing with that as well, people coming near you and actually tackling, and you're not getting a free-kick. You've got to figure all that out. 

"So I've seen enough that I like him. He reminds me a little bit of [Philippe] Coutinho, finding those little pockets and he's very elegant on the ball. I like him a lot and I believe it will turn out to be a signing that is definitely value for money."

Heskey Happy With Transfer Business

Overall, Heskey gave a thumbs-up to Liverpool's transfer business which came to a Premier League-high £269m and proves they can compete with clubs who are traditionally bigger spenders.

Heskey said: "It's been huge and I think it's been good. 

"It was needed because I think it was just [Federico] Chiesa who was the only signing last year for £12.5m. So to then be able to spend the money like they are now is massive. You have to remember Liverpool isn't generally a club that spends huge on transfers. 

"[Virgil] Van Dijk was one, and then [Darwin] Nunez was another. But it's not every season. These are very rare times that they go out and spend like this.

"You've got other clubs that have the power to just keep doing it and keep spending the money -  £200m, £300m, £400m or £500m every year over the two transfer windows. But it's nice to see Liverpool can match them. 

"The reality is Liverpool as an institution is huge, and players will look at Liverpool and say, ‘yeah, I want to go there’. So the fact that they can back that up by spending £300m in this transfer window, it's great."