Liverpool boss Arne Slot calls Cody Gakpo a key player despite his struggle to start regularly ahead of Luis Diaz. The Dutch head coach highlighted that Gakpo has the quality to start regularly but the competition with Diaz is immense.
Both Diaz and Gakpo have enjoyed incredible consistency in form and prefer to play in their natural left-wing attacking position. While each attacking position has two players vying for the spot, Federico Chiesa and Diogo Jota are struggling with injuries.
Gakpo and Diaz have played a pivotal role for Liverpool during the start of the present campaign, contributing with consistency. The duo played together against Brighton & Hove Albion in the recent Carabao Cup 2-3 victory at American Express Stadium.
Diaz played at the right-wing position while Gakpo started at his natural left-wing as both players contributed to the victory. The Dutch international scored two goals while his Colombian teammate got the late winner to help Liverpool reach the quarter-finals.
Gakpo has maintained his incredible run of form since the latter stages of the last season, shutting down his naysayers. The Dutchman received criticism for not contributing enough last season despite playing in several positions that limited his goalscoring chances.
However, the 25-year-old has played a pivotal role for both his club and country, delivering immensely with goals and assists. The Dutchman has played 637 minutes from 14 appearances in all competitions this season, contributing four goals and two assists.
Speaking to the media (via Fabrizio Romano’s X account) after the Brighton victory, Slot praised Gakpo and pinpointed his importance for Liverpool. He said:
“Cody Gakpo is key player for us. For me, he is a regular starter. Maybe he’s not starting every game, but he’s started on a regular basis and he’s in a tough competition with Luis Diaz… so that’s normal at a club like Liverpool”.
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Liverpool are facing several tough opponents from Europe due to the fixture they received in the Champions League. The Reds are facing the likes of Bayer Leverkusen, Real Madrid and PSV Eindhoven in fixture congestion amid top Premier League teams like Manchester City. Gakpo and Diaz will rotate a lot during this crucial period and need to maintain their strong form to help Liverpool achieve positive results.
