Jurgen Klopp outlines plans for Cody Gakpo ahead of Liverpool debut

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has outlined his plans for new signing Cody Gakpo ahead of his Reds debut.

A deal for Gakpo was agreed by Liverpool and PSV Eindhoven on Boxing Day. The 23-year-old then travelled to Merseyside on Wednesday to finalise the move, with Liverpool announcing the transfer later that evening.

After impressing in the 2022 World Cup playing for the Netherlands, many Liverpool fans are itching to see the club’s new acquisition in the famous red shirt. However, the Anfield faithful will have to wait until January to see Gakpo in action.

Ahead of his side’s match against Leicester on Friday, Klopp revealed his plans for the forward by outlining Gakpo’s preferred position.

He said: “The position he probably prefers to play is left wing in a 4-3-3 but Cody can play different positions - he can play all four positions up front - wing and striker. He is still very young, he was in a really good run of form for Holland and for PSV.”

Although Gakpo is a highly-rated talent, he will face tough competition from the likes of Luis Diaz, Diogo Jota, Mo Salah, Roberto Firmino and Darwin Nunez for what is most likely going to be three attacking spots.

Upon signing for the club, Gakpo said: “I think this is a great club for me to come in and try to show what I can do and try to help the team to achieve more beautiful moments that they already did in the past years.

“I think for me personally it’s also good to develop here and there’s a lot of great players here who I can learn a lot of things from.”

A first Klopp hug for Cody 🤗 pic.twitter.com/BOACdc23CU

— Liverpool FC (@LFC) December 28, 2022

Klopp added: “There is a lot to like about Cody. He is still only 23 years old but he already has a lot of experience. He was the captain of PSV, he was the player of the year in Holland last season and, as a lot of people have just seen, he also had a great World Cup with his national team.

“So, it is clear that he is already a really, really good player but his age also means he also has the potential to become even better.”

Gakpo’s Liverpool debut is likely to be the FA Cup clash against Wolverhampton Wanderers at Anfield on 7 January.