Gabriel Agbonlahor wowed by “disgusting” Liverpool man he slammed last year

Gabriel Agbonlahor was full of praise for Alexander Isak following his goalscoring display against Ipswich last Friday.

Liverpool secured their first three points of the Premier League season under new boss Andoni Iraola, with the Swede registering a quickfire double in the first half of their clash at Portman Road.

The efforts take the former Newcastle star’s tally to three goals, on par with Erling Haaland and Bruno Fernandes in the top-flight scoring charts.

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(Photo by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images)

There were, perhaps, questions to be asked of Liverpool’s opposition regarding the quality of defending in the opening 10 minutes of action.

However, the quality of the combination between Cody Gakpo and Isak (not to mention the Sweden international’s finish) likewise deserves equal emphasis.

“He looked very sharp. Maybe we can get a centre-half on to discuss Greaves’ defending – shambolic at the back,” Agbonlahor spoke on TalkSPORT.

“But the way he took that first one, Jeff – people will say goalkeeper should save it – but the way he striked it [with] so much power, great first touch. The second one, that’s what we used to see from Isak at Newcastle; twisting and turning and getting the finish off.

“He just looked a lot more sharp, making a lot of runs in behind. Gakpo’s balls were fantastic. When you give him the service, he will score goals. He just needed a bit of time to bed in.”

Quite a far cry, we have to say, from the pundit’s explosive comments following on from Isak’s switch from St James’ Park to Anfield the summer before last.

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“Who do you think you are, mate? Who do you think you are?” Gabriel Agbonlahor spoke on TalkSPORT back in 2025. “It’s disgusting. What that club’s done for you.”

After a tumultuous 2025/26 campaign played against the backdrop of the 26-year-old’s controversial transfer and fitness issues stemming from the lack of a proper pre-season, the tide seems to be turning.

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(Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images)

You have to say that Liverpool’s opener against Ipswich felt like a very “Liverpool goal”. A turnover forced by Milos Kerkez’s aggressive pressing inside our own half before the ball was moved vertically at pace, with Isak positioned neatly between centre-back and left-back. Eight seconds from the turnover and Liverpool found their opening goal.

To refer back to Gabriel Agbonlahor’s prior analysis, it’s worth pointing out that our record-breaking striker signing has hardly just discovered how to get himself into shooting positions.

The problem was that Liverpool lacked the appropriate pace on the flanks and the creativity down the middle, not to mention the setup from the head coach to platform the central striker.

Look, Liverpool aren’t signing a centre forward for £125m if the plan is to stick with what the status quo was under Jurgen Klopp and, then, briefly, Arne Slot for a single season.

And with the right winger market ultimately letting us down this summer, with top target Yan Diomande initially appearing to decide for PSG before later having his head turned by Real Madrid, we have to double down on the concept of platforming the striker.

With rapid wide options like Victor Munoz, Rio Ngumoha and Bradley Barcola available, that should help provide Alexander Isak with the space he needs to flourish. And it certainly helps when options like Cody Gakpo can use their evidently notable creative prowess to take full advantage of our main man’s clever runs into space.

This could be a great season for Alexander Isak.

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