When Alexander Isak walks out at St James' Park on Sunday, he will not receive a warm welcome. Newcastle United supporters have not forgotten the events of last summer — nor the words that set them in motion. For Isak, 26, the challenge is to silence the anger with his football.

It has been a year since Isak declared that his relationship with Newcastle "cannot continue" due to broken promises and a breakdown in trust. Twelve months on, his Liverpool career has yet to deliver on the extraordinary promise of that £130 million transfer fee — the most expensive in British football history.

A debut season derailed

The early signs were always going to be complicated. Isak arrived at Anfield without a full pre-season behind him, carrying a fitness deficit that slowed his adaptation from the outset. A fractured fibula in December then robbed him of the consistent run of games that strikers depend on to build rhythm and confidence.

The numbers reflected the disruption. Three Premier League goals in his debut campaign barely scratched the surface of what Liverpool's record signing is capable of. Yet the underlying quality was never in doubt. In his final two seasons at Newcastle United, only Erling Haaland and Mohamed Salah outscored him in the Premier League.

He also scored the decisive goal — against Liverpool of all opponents — that ended Newcastle's 56-year wait for a major trophy. Sleek and technically refined, Isak built his reputation on cool, clinical finishing from improbable angles. Those qualities have not disappeared; they have simply been hidden.

Signs of life — and room to grow

Ahead of Sunday's reunion, Liverpool boss Andoni Iraola offered encouragement. "I think he was good in the World Cup," Iraola said at the start of pre-season. "He will have three or four weeks of quality training. I hope we can put him in a good place because he is going to be massive for us this season."

Unlike many of his team-mates for whom World Cup fatigue is a genuine concern, Isak's tournament involvement is considered a positive — a chance to build sharpness in competitive matches. A goal against Monaco during pre-season offered further grounds for optimism.

In Liverpool's opening fixture against Como at Anfield, the glimpses were there but the emphatic statement was not. His best moment arrived early — a composed, angled strike that came agonisingly close to nestling inside the far post. It was the kind of finish that explains why Liverpool paid what they did: all precision, no fuss.

There were also traces of the pressing game that Iraola demands. In the 14th minute, Isak won the ball high on the pitch only for Florian Wirtz to be unable to convert the opportunity. But there were also moments of hesitation — a touch too loose here, a run that did not quite arrive in time there. When supporters applauded a sprint down the right channel in the sixth minute despite him not reaching the ball, the sense of encouragement was also tinged with concern.

"I am asking them to do things that are a little bit different, especially without the ball," Iraola said after the Como match. Isak echoed that collective effort after Monaco: "We are all working hard to make things work."

The physical question

Technically, Isak's record remains impressive. He outperformed his expected goals figure for a fourth consecutive Premier League season last time out, confirming that he is still a fine finisher when the chances arrive. The problem is that too few did.

His top speed last season dropped, and with it his ability to make the runs that create half-chances and pull defenders out of position. Rediscovering that explosiveness is the key factor standing between the player Liverpool signed and the one they have seen so far.

Sunday's visit to St James' Park carries enormous emotional weight — but for Isak, it is less about settling old scores and more about announcing who he intends to be in a Liverpool shirt. One year on from that record-breaking move, this is the moment to start making good on it.