Alexander Isak was the target of sustained hostility from Newcastle United fans on his return to St James' Park on Sunday, and a body language expert has claimed the striker's attempts to appear unaffected were unconvincing.
The Swedish international left the Magpies for Liverpool last summer in a £125million deal, the British transfer record. His departure was acrimonious after he downed tools to engineer the move to Anfield.
Hostile reception
Isak was jeered heavily as he left the Liverpool team coach, with chants of 'rat' audible. Loud whistles and boos accompanied his every touch during the game as he struggled to impose himself on proceedings.
Darren Stanton, speaking via OLBG, said Isak was eager to "get away" from the fans who used to adore him. Stanton accused the forward of trying to act as if he was unbothered by the hostility, when he "clearly was."
Body language analysis
Stanton said: "Alexander Isak does something called lip suppression when he first arrives at St. James' Park. His lips are closed, pierced and slightly compressed. There's no arrival smile or anything like that from someone who is returning to his former home ground. He's very aware of the reception he's receiving and what is being chanted."
"The next thing I notice is that his eyebrows are slightly lowered, and he's looking downwards before entering the ground. This actually shows he wants to get away from the Newcastle fans as quickly as possible. He's trying to act like he's not bothered by it, but he clearly is. When people don't look around, they try to imply that they are not bothered and that they don't care. It wouldn't surprise me if he wasn't actually listening to any music at all!"
Match summary
Stanton added: "With Isak, he comes across as very guarded and doesn't want any of us to read his emotions. He's like a stone and doesn't want to project anything. No anger, no excitement and no disgust. In terms of the way he is walking, it's quite purposeful. But he just wants to get away from it as quickly as possible. Overall, I would say that Isak is very aware of how he is thought of by Newcastle fans. He's clearly unhappy about it. Otherwise, he'd be displaying different emotions. I'd go as far as saying there are eight or nine consistent red flags of behaviour that tell us Alexander Isak is not happy on his return to Newcastle United."
Liverpool were held to a 2-2 draw. Anthony Elanga and Joe Willock hit either side of Cody Gakpo's strike to give the Magpies a 2-1 lead. Dominik Szoboszlai rescued a point for the Reds with a 99th-minute penalty after Victor Munoz was brought down by Lewis Hall.
Isak missed two big chances and had only six touches in the opposition box on a day to forget for Liverpool's record signing.
