‘What you’re seeing’: Sky pundit now says 23-year-old Liverpool man doesn’t bring enough energy to the team

By Ben Evans

Liverpool have had another weekend to forget in the Premier League, after suffering a 3-0 defeat to Brighton yesterday.

A Solly March brace and stylish Danny Welbeck goal earned the Seagulls a deserved three points.

Speaking on Sky Sports News (15/1 12:47pm), Robert Earnshaw was talking about their performance.

Klopp gave Cody Gakpo his Premier League debut yesterday with Darwin Nunez unavailable due to injury.

The Reds are missing plenty of high-profile attackers right now, including Roberto Firmino and Luis Diaz.

It’s certainly not the only problem Klopp faces right now, but the balance of Liverpool’s attack has looked off-kilter in recent weeks.

Earnshaw has now said that Gakpo doesn’t bring the same energy as Liverpool’s other options.

He compared him to Diaz, who he said defenders fear an awful lot more than the 23-year-old.

It’s early days for Gakpo, but Earnshaw is unconvinced he’s the right fit for Liverpool.

Gakpo doesn’t bring energy to Liverpool side

Speaking on Sky Sports News about the Dutch forward, Earnshaw said: “I think Gakpo’s a really good player, a really good forward, a really good finisher.

“I think ‘energy’, because Liverpool, we always think of them as energy and I think what you’re seeing is, Gakpo doesn’t bring the energy.

“When I see somebody like Luis Diaz, he was bringing energy and every time the other team are thinking, ‘I hope he doesn’t pick up the ball’.

“That’s the energy and the psychological [effect].

“When you’re on the pitch, these are the things that happen. When he does pick up the ball, and he’s running at you, and when he loses the ball, he’s the first one to win it back, and then he pops in to give it to [Mohamed] Salah.

“So, these are the things that Liverpool are not doing right now, and I think the energy with Firmino as well missing, the energy is missing.”

Gakpo was compared to Thierry Henry in the build-up to yesterday’s match, but failed to make any real impact.

His record at PSV Eindhoven before joining Liverpool was exceptional, but performing in an out-of-form Liverpool side is a different prospect.

Earnshaw is unsure if Gakpo will bring enough energy to the Liverpool team, however, he’s going to need time to adapt.

If the players around him can pick up their performances, it will certainly help Gakpo settle in.