Upon seeing that Alexander Isak wasn’t starting for Sweden against Slovenia on Tuesday night, Liverpool fans may have been fearful that their record signing was still experiencing fitness issues.Having endured a stop-start beginning to his Anfield career, the 26-year-old recently admitted that he hasn’t been operating at peak sharpness over the past couple of months, and he missed the Reds’ last five matches due to a groin injury.He had a 28-minute substitute outing in his country’s 4-1 defeat to Switzerland last weekend but didn’t make it off the bench in their concluding group game in the World Cup qualifiers.Why did Isak play no part against Slovenia on Tuesday?As per Sportbladet, Sweden national team manager Stefan Pettersson explained that Isak’s omission on Tuesday wasn’t necessarily due to fitness concerns, but rather the fear of suspension.Graham Potter’s side knew going into the game that they’d be involved in the play-offs in March, and with the Liverpool striker already on one yellow card in the qualifying campaign, another would’ve seen him banned for their forthcoming fixture in four months’ time.Petterson outlined that he sought ‘supplementary letters’ from FIFA and UEFA in order to ‘double-check’ the rules regarding bookings and suspensions, having sought clarity on whether yellow cards would be wiped after completion of the group stage.The Sweden head coach described it as ‘not an ideal situation’ and pointed out that the fear of picking up a ban inhibits players on the pitch.(Photo by Carl Recine/Getty Images)Isak could’ve done with the minutes but hard to blame PotterWith nothing riding on last night’s match for the Swedes, it makes sense that they wouldn’t want to risk Isak (or any of the other eight players who were one booking away from a suspension) triggering a ban for the play-off semi-final.However, as John Aldridge justifiably argued, the Liverpool striker could’ve done with minutes on the pitch in Stockholm in order to build up his fitness for the return of the club season at the weekend.The 26-year-old will go into the game against Nottingham Forest on Saturday somewhat cold, and it seems likely that he’ll be on the bench at Anfield rather than being thrown straight back into the fray, especially with Hugo Ekitike on target for France over the past week.However, with the Reds playing eight matches before Christmas, Isak will surely get a few starting opportunities, so long as his body doesn’t let him down again in the next few weeks.It’s a pity that he didn’t get some minutes into his legs on Tuesday night, but Potter will feel vindicated in leaving the forward on the bench in order to ensure his availability for the play-offs in March.You can watch Slot’s full post-Man City press conference via Empire of the Kop on YouTube:The post Alexander Isak injury fears put to rest as Sweden chief explains Liverpool striker’s omission appeared first on The Empire of The Kop.