Alexander Isak’s 13-touch game sets unwanted Liverpool Premier League record

Alexander Isak scored Liverpool’s opening goal but ended the match with the lowest number of touches recorded by a Reds player to complete a Premier League game since Opta began collecting data in 2003-04.

The Sweden striker had only 13 touches during the full 90 minutes of Liverpool’s 2-2 draw with Nottingham Forest at Anfield on Saturday evening. Opta described Isak as “isolated” after highlighting the unusually low level of involvement from the Liverpool forward.

“Alexander Isak touched the ball just 13 times today against Nottingham Forest, the lowest number of touches by a Liverpool player to play 90 minutes in a Premier League match in the records since 2003-04,” Opta said.

The figure is the fewest recorded for any Liverpool player who completed a Premier League match since the statistics company began keeping its records for the competition in the 2003-04 season.

Isak’s goal had appeared to give Liverpool an important contribution from their main striker, but the forward was largely cut off from the rest of the team for long periods of the contest. Despite completing the entire match, he had fewer opportunities to receive possession than any Liverpool player in a full Premier League game during the period covered by Opta’s data.

The draw was Liverpool’s second successive 2-2 result at the start of the Premier League campaign. They were held by Newcastle United by the same score in their opening fixture and were unable to claim victory in their first home match of the season.

It was also the first match Liverpool played at Anfield under their new manager, Spanish coach Andoni Iraola. His side again had to settle for a point after failing to turn Isak’s goal and their attacking moments into a winning result.

Liverpool will face Ipswich Town in the third round of the Premier League. Their next fixture will provide another opportunity to improve on their opening results, while Isak will hope for a greater role in possession after his isolated display against Nottingham Forest.

The match at Anfield finished 2-2, leaving both sides with a point from a contest in which Isak made history for an unwanted statistic even though he found the net for Liverpool.