Gakpo emerges as Reds' latest game-changing star

Liverpool are accustomed to singing about walking through the storm.

- RICHARD JOLLY

They had to walk through the fog here, losing their way when Leicester City took the lead. But they ended up striding seven points clear at the Premier League summit, with the bonus that they retain a game in hand on second-placed Chelsea.

Comebacks were supposed to be Jurgen Klopp’s forte, though his successor has carried on where he left off. As the goalscorer Curtis Jones put it, Klopp laid the foundation for Liverpool’s success “and Arne Slot has carried it on”. Liverpool’s reward for a fightback in Klopp’s traditions was a 22nd win in 26 games under the Dutchman. In a division where so many others are consistently inconsistent, Liverpool stand out as the exception to the rule.

It helps that they have a sizeable cast of match-winners. If Mohamed Salah tops the bill, he also completed victory, bending in a shot to get the goal that eluded him earlier when he drew a fine save and then hit the bar. Yet the game was decided by Cody Gakpo and Curtis Jones, a duo who began the season on the bench and who might not figure in Slot’s first-choice team. “It is nice to have so many options,” said Slot. Gakpo is emerging as one of the most enticing, joining Salah and the rested Luis Diaz in double figures for the season with a superlative equaliser. An assist means he now averages a goal contribution every 98 minutes this season.