“Sit on the bench”- Liverpool legend believes Eredivisie star will not break into Liverpool XI

John Barnes believes Cody Gakpo would not break into the Liverpool starting XI

Former Liverpool midfielder John Barnes, while speaking to BonusCodeBets (h/t Liverpool Echo), believes that Liverpool target Cody Gakpo would not be able to break into the club’s starting eleven if a deal for the forward goes through.

Barnes, who made 406 appearances for the club claims that Liverpool have a depth of attacking talent in the squad and it is not clear whether Gakpo could break the pecking order.

“So, it really depends on what Gakpo wants. Not many clubs have the same attacking strength that Liverpool has and he needs to consider if he wants to play week in week out or sit on the bench.”

Not doubting the talent and ability of the Dutch international who excelled at the FIFA World Cup, the attacking department in Liverpool is one such area where no urgent need of reinforcements is needed.

Although many feel that the void left by Sadio Mane is yet to be filled after his departure to FC Bayern Munich in the summer, there is a growing sense of optimism that the recently signed forwards Darwin Nunez, Fabio Carvalho and Luis Diaz would come good in the future.

Even Diogo Jota had been riddled with injuries for most of the first half of the season and hence not been able to contribute much to the team’s cause. However, we all are aware of his abilities, especially looking back at his exploits last season.

Season veterans Mohamed Salah and Roberto Firmino are also present to provide the much-needed experience at the top for the young talent to truly come to their own.

Hence, in all considerations, a move for Gakpo does not resonate much with the manner in which we have concluded transfers over the past few years.

It could also be a case that Jurgen Klopp has been left surprised by the multitude of serious injuries that many key players suffered and therefore would want sufficient depth in the squad to compete with the likes of Manchester City.

Even the player’s preference after an impressive season would not be to warm the substitute bench with his transfer and could potentially be a deal breaker in the end.

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Rivals Manchester United have also shown serious interest in the player and could potentially sway him with guarantees of more game-time than what could potentially be provided at Liverpool.

It remains to be seen how this transfer saga pans out but it would not be wrong to say that it does seem like the conclusion of where Gakpo will land up would happen sooner rather than later.