Cody Gakpo might not have ended his night with a goal or assist at Leipzig, but his understated performance on the left wing is worthy of attention.
For the first time since the end of last season, Gakpo started three games in a row for Liverpool having been selected over Luis Diaz on the left wing at Leipzig.
With the help of FotMob, we can see that statistically he was the Reds’ second-best player on the night with a rating of 8-out-of-10, behind only Caoimhin Kelleher (8.5).
There is healthy debate over how often the Dutchman should be starting under Arne Slot, and his most recent outing did his chances of staying in the XI no harm.
Gakpo asserts himself in the XI
Liverpool’s No. 18 started the season with one start from the opening six games, starting as the second-choice behind Diaz and readily coming on late in games to give the Colombian a rest.
Slot has never hidden the fact that the two are in competition against one another, and Gakpo did his chances of retaining his place against Arsenal no harm on Wednesday evening.
No player created more chances (4), had more shots (4), or was fouled more than Gakpo (4) in Germany, while his five duels won was the joint-most in the Liverpool team alongside countryman Ryan Gravenberch.
According to Opta‘s Michael Reid, that makes the 27-year-old the first Liverpool player to have four or more in each of those statistics since Philippe Coutinho against Maribor in 2017:
Cody Gakpo tonight
4 shots
4 chances created
4 fouls won
5 duels wonFirst player to have 4+ in all those stats in any game for #LFC since Philippe Coutinho v Maribor in October 2017.
— Michael Reid (@michael_reid11) October 23, 2024
Gakpo’s night also saw him have the joint-second most touches inside the opposition box (6), three passes into the final third, and he was never dispossessed.
It was another eye-catching European outing, his second start in three, and he lays claim to the most big chances created (3), successful tackles per 90 (1.5) and xA (0.9) in the competitions so far.
He is ensuring it is the right kind of headache for Slot to suffer.
Gakpo has played 245 of the last available 270 minutes – Diaz comparatively has 69 – but there is no certainty that the No. 18 will get pulled from the side at the Emirates.
The argument for fresh legs will, obviously, weigh in Diaz’s favour, but there is an argument to be made that the Dutchman has earned the right to keep his place in the team.
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