Slot details why Gakpo was left out before being thrown on at Palace | OneFootball

Liverpool’s defeat at Selhurst Park has left plenty of questions, but one has been answered directly by Arne Slot – why Cody Gakpo started on the bench before being called upon in the second half.

Why Liverpool turned to Gakpo against Palace

(Photo by Tom Dulat/Getty Images)

Speaking after the match via liverpoolfc.com, the 47-year-old explained his tactical reasoning for initially leaving the Dutch forward out.

“We wanted to overload the midfield with Florian Wirtz in the first half – that’s why we didn’t start with Cody,” said the former Feyenoord coach.

That plan was abandoned at half-time with the Reds chasing the game after a poor first 45 minutes.

“If you’re 1-0 down and you need a goal, you prefer to have width on both sides – and that’s why we brought Cody in,” the manager added.

The German midfielder Wirtz had also spurned a golden chance, compounding frustrations with our head coach also addressing Alexander Isak’s performance in the match.

The switch to bring in Gakpo did at least help stretch Palace, with Federico Chiesa’s late equaliser looking as though it might have rescued a point before Eddie Nketiah’s dramatic winner.

Although it did seem that Slot was pinpointing some blame for this winner on Cody Gakpo.

Liverpool’s big names under pressure to deliver

(Photo by Tom Dulat/Getty Images)

This was the second Premier League start for Isak since his £125m arrival, and he was joined by Wirtz, who cost £116m from Bayer Leverkusen.

Neither delivered a goal scoring moment in South London, underlining the pressure now on our two marquee additions to settle quickly.

The defeat also highlighted defensive issues – ones that could have been helped had Marc Guehi’s deadline-day transfer not collapsed. Instead, Palace’s captain led their charge while we struggled to cope.

As Slot admitted, the decision to start without Gakpo backfired. It’s another reminder of how much fine-tuning is still required in a Liverpool side that has already been heavily reshaped this summer.

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