Thunder in Florida, Thunder at Anfield: Isak, Ekitike, or Both?

As rumours swirl and Newcastle play their hand, Liverpool's summer transfer plan could yet deliver a double striker shock that changes everything.

Isak? Ekitike? Or both?

As I sit here by the pool in Florida, watching fat droplets bounce off the surface of the water and thunder crack across the grey sky, I can’t help but smile. This is peak pre-season. The quiet before the storm, both literally and in football terms. Because make no mistake, something is coming at Liverpool. Something big.

We’re watching a team evolve again. Arne Slot has already shown that he’s not just a man who can handle the weight of Anfield expectations, he’s one who thrives on it. Premier League title in his first season, fluent attacking football, a squad that looks hungry again. And yet, you feel like the next chapter is being written right now, in the boardrooms, on the training pitches, in the minds of scouts and analysts.

So I’ve been thinking, as the rain lashes down here in the Sunshine State, about two names that won’t leave the headlines: Alexander Isak and Hugo Ekitike.

And three questions come to mind.

Isak?
Ekitike?
Or both?

The Isak conundrum

Let’s deal with the Swedish striker first. Isak is a player Liverpool have admired for years. Anyone who watched him at Real Sociedad will remember a striker with elegance in motion, calm finishing, and a football brain that buzzes with awareness. He made defenders in La Liga look like they were running uphill in treacle. Then came the Premier League switch and, to be fair, he didn’t flinch. He has taken to English football like a natural. Slick movement, intelligent hold up play, and the knack of turning nothing into something in and around the box.

He is, in many ways, the Firmino successor that never was. Not because he is the same player, but because he does so many of the same things, just differently. He drops in, links play, and drags defenders out of position. But he also has that gliding stride that allows him to coast past markers and that ice cool finish that turns chances into goals.

The problem? Newcastle don’t want to lose him. And why would they? He’s their jewel. Their marquee forward. So when Liverpool come knocking, there’s always going to be resistance. But make no mistake, Isak wants to play Champions League football. He wants to compete for titles. And right now, Liverpool can offer him both.

Newcastle fans might scoff at the idea. Some even suggest that they’ve got the better of Liverpool in all this. That they’ve bluffed, dodged, and inflated the Ekitike deal in the process. A few even believe they’ve held on to Isak and helped push Liverpool into paying over the odds for a less proven forward. Maybe they have. Maybe they haven’t. But it’s rarely that simple.

The Ekitike gamble

Ekitike is a different beast. Not quite the finished product, not yet tested at the very highest level, but bursting with potential. The sort of player Liverpool have made a habit of signing over the years. The sort of player who, under the right coaching, could explode.

At Reims, he looked electric at times. Quick feet, fearless finishing, and a confidence that bordered on cocky. His move to PSG didn’t quite ignite in the way many hoped, but the raw materials are all there. He’s 22 years old, with bags of physicality, technical skill, and the kind of swagger that reminds you of a young Sadio Mané, just in a bigger frame.

And here’s where it gets interesting. The media whirlpool is circling fast. Some reports say Ekitike wants Liverpool. Others say Liverpool want him. Some say Newcastle were never really in for him, just playing a part to steer the market. The truth? Probably somewhere in the middle.

Liverpool are clever. They move in shadows. They brief quietly, then strike hard. If Ekitike really is available for a reasonable fee, you can bet they’ve done the groundwork. You can bet they’ve spoken to his people. You can bet they’ve mapped out how he fits into Slot’s system. The question is, do they see him as the signing, or just a signing?

Diaz, Nunez... and the shifting sands

No Liverpool transfer window would be complete without one of our own being whispered about on the move. And this summer, that spotlight has fallen on two of our frontline stars: Luis Diaz and Darwin Nunez.

The Diaz rumours are persistent. Barcelona, PSG, even Saudi clubs have been namechecked. The consensus? If the right money comes in, Liverpool will listen. Not because they want to lose him, but because this is a new regime. Slot has no sacred cows, only a vision. If a sale funds a reshaped attack, one that fits his system more precisely, then so be it.

Then there’s Darwin.

The Nunez story is curious. Wild at times, sublime at others, he has split opinion more than any Liverpool striker in recent memory. Some say he’s one season away from exploding, others fear the chaos will never fully be tamed. What’s changed now is the tone. The murmurs are louder. And what’s more ironic than Newcastle United appearing from the shadows in the Nunez narrative?

After supposedly outfoxing Liverpool in the Isak, Ekitike dance, now they’re being linked with the very player whose position might be threatened if either arrives. Nunez to Newcastle? It still feels far fetched, but you don’t have to squint too hard to see how it might suit all parties.

Liverpool get a sizeable fee, clean the slate, and move for both targets. Newcastle get a powerful, unpredictable forward who still has something to prove in the Premier League. And Darwin? He gets a fresh start, less pressure, and a system that might suit him better.

It could be smoke and mirrors. It often is. But there’s a pattern forming. Liverpool are evolving, not hesitating. And that means the unthinkable might not be so unthinkable after all.

A question of strategy

What if it’s not a choice of one or the other? What if the plan is both?

Sounds far fetched? Maybe. But Liverpool have done this before. Think back to summer windows when pundits said there wouldn’t be big spending, and then bang, out come the chequebooks. Slot has already won the league. He has credit in the bank. And if there’s one thing we’ve learned from Klopp’s latter years, it’s that standing still is going backwards in this league.

Both Isak and Ekitike could fit in. Isak as a more polished, immediate starter. Ekitike as the raw talent to develop. One plugs straight into the eleven. The other offers a new gear off the bench. One is a statement. The other is a project. But both could be devastating.

My view

If I had to choose? I’d take Isak. Proven in the league, ready to lead the line, able to drop deep or run beyond. He’s the safer bet. The smarter signing. But if we ended up with both? That would tell the football world that Liverpool mean business again.

It would tell Newcastle that the game they thought they were playing has just changed. That the Reds are moving differently now.

And it would tell us fans, sat by pools or back in the pubs of Liverpool or on sofas across the world, that Arne Slot’s second act might be even more exciting than the first.

As the thunder rolls one more time across this Floridian sky, I can’t help but think, whatever happens, it’s going to be a hell of a season.