When Cody Gakpo was signed for Liverpool, many assumed that he would continue his favoured position on the left-wing and would be competing with Luis Diaz for a role in that area of the pitch but Jurgen Klopp has used the forward more centrally since his arrival.
Matt Addison spoke about this decision on BBC Radio Merseyside’s The Red Kop podcast: “Gakpo, therefore, maybe becomes that false nine type of player. He is not quite the same, but I don’t think you will ever be the same as what Firmino does.
“On the evidence so far, I would rather see him on the left-hand side, to give him a bit of space to do what he does – dribbling and being able to beat a man.”
It’s clear from the public praise the German tactician has given his new Dutch attacker that he is hugely impressed with his defensive work and ability to link the play together – very much in the mould of what we’re used to seeing from Bobby Firmino.
With Darwin Nunez being trialled on the left-hand side of the pitch too, it appears that our manager is still trying to figure out the perfect position for each of his new attackers but once they are all back fit and healthy – having the versatility in the frontline will be crucial.
Our No.18 has been signed on a long-term deal and so it’s clear that the coaches think there’s a lot of talent present for them to work with.
Only time will tell whether they were right in that instance, though we’ve got a pretty remarkable track record when it comes to our prior incomings.
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