Salah: Gakpo and Darwin are vital factors to our success

Mo Salah has detailed how valued Cody Gakpo and Darwin Nunez are within the Liverpool camp.

The two 24 year-old forwards  came to the club last season, a campaign which was marked by its inconsistency on a  overall team level.

Despite the fragile confidence level of the team, both Nunez and Gakpo performed adequately in their debut campaign (Nunez 15 in 42 appearances) while Gakpo arrived midway through the season from PSV when the Reds were suffering a true crisis of confidence and given those circumstances he produced a respectable 7 goals from 26 appearances.

Having that sort of introduction to a new league may have been a daunting one for some players, especially when the Jurgen Klopp era has been sprinkled with ultimate success. In a results sense, it has been a much smoother transition for the duo this season as the Reds have all to play for both in the league and in Europe.

In terms of personal development Nunez in particular has looked to harness an all-round aspect to his game and has produced 13 assists along with 18 goals in 45 appearances.

Meanwhile, Gakpo has scored 14 goals in the same amount of appearances, the main difference being that the Dutchman’s versatility quite often sees him played in various positions and has led to the question being asked just where can Liverpool get the best out of him, and indeed if he fits the way the way that Klopp wants to play.

And a fair bit of that impression has to do with personal traits, Nunez the Uruguayan street fighter, ‘captain chaos’ embracing the contest like it is a life or death situation.

Meanwhile Gakpo is much more laconic and languid and plays his own game at a much more serene pace, sometimes described as in slow or still motion.

But regardless of what we may think of fans, the only thing that matters is the impression he gives to the coaches and teammates.

Salah has seen plenty of players come and go during his time at the Reds, and speaking to Astro Supersport (per the Echo), said both of their output is highly regarded.

“Cody doesn't get credit because the fans I don't know if they really understand his game or not. But he is a very, very clever player. I admire the way he thinks, it's very, very good. He is young and wants to learn, he asks a lot of questions.

“Darwin is a key for us as well. The way he plays, the way he opens space for us, it's very good. But he doesn't get a lot of credit because once he misses a chance, opposition fans start to jump (on him) and Liverpool fans start defending him and he's inside that mess. But for me, he's one of the best players on the team."

To achieve the success that this team deserves for their efforts during this season, it has to be a whole lot more clinical in the final third that what we have seen in recent games.

And to that extent, the likes of Gakpo and Nunez have pivotal roles to play from now until the end of May.