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In a familiar pattern this season, Liverpool didn’t play perfectly against Everton. It started superbly, but, as was the case with Atletico Madrid, allowed the game to drift. Crucially, though, it did win again, and Hugo Ekitike was central.
Arne Slot’s side didn’t win five matches on the spin at all when they won the Premier League title last season. Already, though, it now has this time around, thanks to goals from Ekitike and Ryan Gravenberch.
Gravenberch, in particular, was exceptional. In a changed role, given more license to roam forward, he excelled. And Ekitike, at the front of the Liverpool team, did the equivalent job of tying everything together in attack.
Ekitike took his goal well — teed up by a perfect Gravenberch pass — but it was his general play that impressed the most. He is confident, clinical, and clever.
The Frenchman’s link-up play and sensible decision-making saw him evade tackles and avoid the need to get into a duel with James Tarkowski. It feels harsh to bring Darwin Nunez into it, but the comparisons are stark.
In this game, Ekitike made four ball recoveries, three clearances, and won six out of the nine duels he did contest. Immediately, he looked at ease in a new environment.
Already, Ekitike has scored three Premier League goals to date, but he is also proving himself capable of being an all-round package.
Ekitike was chasing and chasing relentlessly — he never stopped until he was replaced in the second half.
At one point, as Dominik Szoboszlai— another strong performer — galloped past him, Ekitike realized that he needed to be pressing too, and quickly sprung into action. In time, those movements will come much more naturally.
"I don’t think anyone is surprised that I was mainly impressed by the way [PSG] press," Arne Slot said when he was asked about what he will demand from Alexander Isak recently.
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"So, double-press. And that is what [Ousmane] Dembele was one of the examples [of] that was so outstanding in his pressing game.
"The moment Isak is fit and match-fit and can play 90, the next step is playing three times in a week 90 minutes, and then the next step is going one step further in terms of pressing," Slot said.
"And that’s what he has to do. Then, scoring goals and doing special things in attack, that is something he will 100 per cent do."
The expectations placed on Ekitike will be the same, and he is likely to get up to full match sharpness more quickly given he is starting from a higher base.
Will Isak and Ekitike play together? It’s a possibility, certainly. For now, Liverpool can relish the first-world problem of incorporating both.
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