Slot responds with firm Gomez message after Paul Joyce questioned Liverpool future | OneFootball

Liverpool’s win at the London Stadium carried plenty of talking points, yet one familiar face on the right side may prove to be the most significant for what comes next.

The Times’ Paul Joyce asked a week ago whether Gomez still had a role at the club, questioning if our manager trusted him “at a time of injuries”, despite knocking back interest from AC Milan and Brighton in the summer.

The past weekend has provided something close to a response.

Arne Slot handed the 28-year-old his first Premier League start of the campaign, and the Englishman repaid that trust with the kind of disciplined display our boss had been asking for.

The Croydon-born defender created early chances for Alexander Isak and later delivered the stoppage-time cross converted by Cody Gakpo.

Why Gomez mattered most in Liverpool’s response

(Photo by Alex Pantling/Getty Images)

This was also a moment that allowed Don Hutchison to double down on his praise.

He argued on Radio 5 Live that “without being flashy, Joe Gomez just came in and played his role as a defender and right-back” – a verdict that tied neatly into the more pragmatic approach we saw across the pitch.

Paul Joyce had raised concerns that constantly reshuffling Dominik Szoboszlai into full-back roles removed too much from midfield, and the West Ham win showed the benefits of restoring a natural defender.

It helped give Florian Wirtz room to create the opener for Isak and allowed us to keep a clean sheet for the first time in four games.

It also pushed us back into the European conversation, moving the Reds to 21 points, just one behind the Champions League places.

Liverpool’s ongoing defensive puzzle and the Gomez implications

Picture via @LFC on X

The context around this matters.

Joyce highlighted how Virgil van Dijk and Alisson will enter the final year of their contracts in the summer, while Andy Robertson’s situation also requires attention, and Conor Bradley’s injury issues remain a concern.

Even the journalist’s suggestion that “Gomez probably needs a move next summer” now feels less certain after the way the defender spoke following the victory.

In that interview, the former Charlton defender said we needed to “try and keep a clean sheet, being defensively being sound,” emphasising unity and insisting “we’re a squad… these moments only make us stronger.”

For a team sitting eighth but with margins tight, these small steps matter.

Slot may still want a new centre-back in the next window, and the Champions League race will influence recruitment, but for now the message is clear.

Gomez has shown he does indeed have a role here and he seems intent on keeping it.

You can watch Slot’s post-West Ham press conference via Empire of the Kop on YouTube:

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