LONDON -- Arne Slot embraced Alexander Isak on the touchline as the Liverpool supporters launched into song. The Sweden international assumed his seat on the bench, looking like a £125 million weight had, at least temporarily, been lifted off his shoulders.

Isak's second-half strike against West Ham United provided the launchpad for a priceless 2-0 victory that moves the beleaguered Premier League champions up to eighth in the table. And, while Liverpool had hoped the striker would be propelling the club to far loftier heights when his acrimonious, British-record transfer from Newcastle United was completed on deadline day, his first league goal in a red shirt could mark a watershed moment in his team's season.

When the fixture list dropped back in June, few would have expected

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