Alexander Isak shines in Liverpool's victory over Ipswich

Alexander Isak finally looked every inch a £125m striker – and Ipswich felt the full force of it.

On a blustery afternoon in Suffolk, the Swedish forward tore into the newly promoted side with a ruthless first-half display that settled the contest before it ever threatened to become a contest at all. Two goals inside nine minutes, both drilled beyond Kjell Scherpen, turned Portman Road’s early optimism into stunned silence and handed Andoni Iraola his first win as Liverpool manager.

Isak explodes, Gakpo pulls the strings

Liverpool had spent the opening weeks of the season chasing games, twice falling behind in draws with Nottingham Forest and Newcastle. This time they came out snarling.

Six minutes in, Cody Gakpo split the Ipswich backline with a sharp, vertical pass. Isak took it in stride and lashed a low effort inside Scherpen’s near post. Simple finish, brutal intent. For the first time in this Premier League campaign, Liverpool were in front rather than scrambling after a deficit.

Ipswich barely had time to reset.

Three minutes later, the same combination cut them open again. Gakpo, drifting intelligently between the lines, picked out Isak once more. The Swede did the rest, burying his second and effectively killing the game before Ipswich could settle into any kind of rhythm. It was already the third time this season that Gakpo has assisted Isak in the league, an early-season partnership that is starting to look like Liverpool’s new attacking heartbeat.

For Isak, this was the performance many at Anfield had been waiting for since his British-record move from Newcastle United a year ago. Sharp movement, clean touches, ruthless finishing. The criticism around his impact has been steady noise in the background; at Portman Road, he turned it down to a whisper.

Araujo’s statement at the back

While the scoreline and the price tags draw the eye to the top end of the pitch, Liverpool’s defence quietly did its job with a steel that will have pleased Iraola just as much.

Ipswich’s best opening came on the half-hour. A teasing cross to the far post looked perfect for Daizen Maeda to turn in and ignite a comeback. Ronald Araujo, on his full debut, had other ideas. The Uruguayan read it, stretched, and threw himself into a crucial last-ditch block that snuffed out the chance and with it much of the home side’s belief.

From there, Liverpool managed the game with authority. Ipswich pushed in patches, but clear chances were scarce. The clean sheet owed as much to that defensive concentration as to Isak’s early fireworks.

Hat-trick denied, control maintained

Isak thought he had his hat-trick before the interval. Florian Wirtz, busy and inventive between the lines, slid a low ball across the box for the striker to sweep home. The away end erupted, only for the assistant’s flag to cut celebrations short. The offside call stood, and the Swede had to settle for two.

It did little to alter the flow. Liverpool stayed in command, circulating the ball, picking their moments, and rarely allowing Ipswich the kind of chaos that newly promoted sides often thrive on at home.

Barcola arrives, Iraola off the mark

The final act belonged to another big-money arrival.

With 25 minutes left, Bradley Barcola stepped off the bench to make his Liverpool debut. Signed from Paris Saint-Germain for £123m just days earlier, the French forward received a warm welcome from the travelling support, who roared his every early touch. The game was already safe, but his introduction hinted at the depth and variety Iraola now has at his disposal in the attacking third.

For the Basque coach, the win carried weight beyond the three points. Avoiding an unwanted place in the club’s history – as the first Liverpool manager since Brendan Rodgers to go winless in his opening three Premier League matches – removes an early narrative he did not need. Instead, he walks away from Portman Road with his first victory, a clean sheet, and his record signing finally roaring.

Liverpool climb to fifth with five points from three games; Ipswich sit 13th on three points, reminded in harsh terms of the level they must reach to survive.

Next comes a different kind of test. Atletico Madrid await in the Champions League on Wednesday, before Fulham visit Anfield on 12 September. If Isak and this reshaped Liverpool attack carry this edge into Europe and beyond, the questions around this side might soon shift from “when will it click?” to “who can stop it?”