Liverpool supporters were as surprised as many Manchester United supporters to see that Cody Gakpo had agreed a deal to move to Merseyside, but one man who may not be as delighted as his supporters is Darwin Nunez.
The Uruguayan has impressed many of the Anfield faithful but has faced a fair amount of jeering from those further afield and many of these observers may assume that the signing of the Dutch international could spell the end of days. of the former Benfica striker in the starting lineup.
Surely aware of the deal that had been struck with PSV, Jurgen Klopp seemed to send a very deliberate message to his wealthy striker at his Boxing Day press conference, with the 55-year-old saying: “He’s unstoppable when we keep the ball.” and pass him at the right time, there’s no defender who can really catch him speed-wise.
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“I know all the stories and everything is fine, but we are completely calm, everything will be fine. He played an exceptional game and we won 3-1 and that’s all that counts.
“I haven’t been in business since yesterday and I’ve had a few strikers around. I know scoring early isn’t really important. There are so many other things that are much more important. You just have to stay calm.”
It looks like once the 23-year-old adds more calm to his game, he will soon become a real goal threat, but giving him some time out of the spotlight doesn’t seem to be in the works just yet.
However, given the current injury concerns for Luis Diaz, Diogo Jota and Bobby Firmino, the German is likely to use his summer signing alongside Mo Salah and the new Eredivisie attacker for the near future.
Then it’s up to the players to prove who deserves the starting role for the Reds full-time, as they try to catch up with those at the top of the table.
