Cody Gakpo‘s numbers continue to rise at Liverpool, but there is undeniably an area of his game that he can improve upon to reach a world-class level.
Gakpo remains somewhat of an enigma for Liverpool. At his best he is devastating, quick, direct, strong and has a hammer of a right foot.
When defenders see the Dutchman cutting in off the left wing, they know they are in trouble. At 6’3″, he is a threat in the air too.
He works hard, is happy to play out of position and is an excellent character within the dressing room. For his country, he is undoubtedly the star of Ronald Koeman’s Oranje, with 15 goals in 39 appearances since his debut in 2021.
However, at 26 year old and entering his peak years, his Liverpool career is arguably at a crossroads.
CODY GAKPO, SEASON 2024/25
Started: 32 (All competitions)
On as a substitute: 17
Unused sub: 1
Goals: 18
Assists: 6
Overall Season Rating: 8
Cody Gakpo’s positional conundrum
When he was signed from PSV Eindhoven in January 2023 for a £37 million initial fee, it was rightly seen as an incredible piece of business.
He had emerged as one of the standout young attackers in Europe and Liverpool did brilliantly to get in ahead of other interested rivals. A player to deliver in the short and, more pertinently, the long term.
Yet, two and a half years later, can we honestly say that Gakpo makes Arne Slot’s first-choice eleven?
As it stands, Luis Díaz remains the first choice off the left-wing. This, and the fact that serious investment is happening in other areas, are perhaps behind rumours that Bayern Munich are interested in testing Liverpool’s resolve around a saleable asset.
Before the arrival of Slot, predecessor Jurgen Klopp potentially got it wrong with Gakpo, trying to shoehorn him into the side as a centre-forward and only playing him in his natural home on the left in 22 percent of his 53 appearances under the German.
The 2024/25 season encapsulated the Gakpo conundrum.
In and out the starting XI
He undoubtedly had an important role to play in Liverpool’s famous 20th league title. With 18 goals and seven assists across 49 appearances, Gakpo outperformed his other full season at the club.
It shouldn’t be surprising that he did so while making almost all of his appearances off the left. Yet at the same time, he started on the bench 18 times across all competitions, a third of all games.
He only started two of Liverpool’s first nine league games, only two in total in the Champions League and then, despite being a regular in the League Cup, was subsequently dropped for the final.
And the number of times he completed 90 minutes? A mere eight matches. Will Gakpo continue to be happy with what is essentially the role of a very impressive squad player?
As always, there is a flip side to the narrative. You can argue that top clubs competing for multiple titles in stupidly long seasons now need great options and depth in every position.
You can look at the numbers, with Gakpo Liverpool’s third top-scorer in the league and joint-first in the Champions League, or you can correctly point out that he eventually earned the trust of his countryman Slot, starting in 16 out of 18 league matches from the start of October to the middle of February.
Slot works with a very small group of core regulars – Gakpo was one of them. Furthermore, he played an integral role during the crucial, busy Christmas period in which Liverpool truly accelerated away from the chasing pack.
He started the matches against Newcastle, Man City, Tottenham, Man United and Nottingham Forest. From the start of December to the end of January, he bagged seven of his 10 League goals.
Tactically, Gakpo proved himself important for Liverpool. Although it is clear he likes to cut inside, he offers genuine width on the left, helping to stretch defences with his pace and directness.
It is not fair to directly compare him with Diaz because they are such different modern wide-forwards; one tricks and tight spaces, the other uses deliberate movements and thrusting runs.
It must be a right-back’s nightmare having to potentially deal with both of them, excellent in their own ways, in one match.
Build-up play is an area for improvement
We also saw how Gakpo was vital for solving Slot’s striker issue, not by plonking him in an unnatural position upfront, but by enabling Slot to use the pace and finishing of Diaz down the middle while knowing that he had an excellent alternative out wide.
Akin to most top-level forwards, Gakpo is superb at getting in the box at the right time for pull-backs or decisive square passes, and he is a real threat in the air for crosses from the right.
The dinked right-footed cross to the back post that he can execute while moving at speed is technically impressive and offensively valuable in equal measure, and it is something he does regularly with the Netherlands to find the charging Denzel Dumfries.
It is fair to question whether Gakpo does need to add more strings to his bow if he really is to become indispensable.
It is great having a core quality, a go-to move, but perhaps the next step for Gakpo is to show that he can play more in between the lines, that he can sometimes shift to the right during a match to discombobulate defenders and, whisper it quietly, that he can actually sometimes use that visible strength down the middle of the pitch.
Indeed, the world’s best forwards today are able to offer threats from multiple areas.
Looking at the FBRef data from the past year comparing Gakpo to positional peers, he is also in the bottom 20 percentile for attempted and progressive passes, suggesting his contribution in build-up play needs improving.
That perhaps isn’t a huge issue for a player whose value is measured in goals, but what is surprising is that he is in the bottom half for progressive carries and successful take-ons. This hints at a player who isn’t beating his man enough, which can never be a positive for a winger.
Cody Gakpo’s Liverpool role next season
After dismissing the links with Bayern, it is highly likely Gakpo will still be a Liverpool player come the start of next season – and that is something fans should be happy about.
If the club do purchase Milos Kerkez, you can imagine it really helping Gakpo, whose game is well suited to having a left-back behind him with a big engine making constant overlapping runs, something that Andy Robertson just isn’t able to do at the same intensity or with the same regularity as before.
Whether Slot moves for a new centre-forward or not is intriguing as it could reduce Diaz’s game time down the middle and turn it into a season-long head-to-head with Gakpo for that left-forward role.
Gakpo is a high quality forward who could well become an elite one.
In 326 professional appearances, he has 101 goals and 73 assists. Yet, as it stands, he still isn’t talked up as one of Europe’s best attackers.
You feel that next season is the biggest of his career. The one where he needs to take the next step to prove to Slot that he is deserving of that regular starting place and that he can fulfil the obvious potential to be one of the world’s best.
Best moment: A brilliant curler to equalise at home to Leicester, with the Reds struggling to break down their opponents.
Worst moment: An awful cameo against Paris Saint-Germain at Anfield in extra-time when he didn’t look remotely fit.
Role next season: An important attacking option who needs to prove himself worthy of a definite place in the starting XI.
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