InterviewCody Gakpo on improvement aims, Man Utd rivalry and Van Dijk appreciation

The Netherlands forward came off the bench and was involved in the team move for the second goal of a 2-0 Premier League win over Wolverhampton Wanderers in midweek.

Gakpo had previously started every Reds game since arriving from PSV Eindhoven in January and opened his goalscoring account with strikes versus Everton and then Newcastle United.

Now, the No.18 wants to help Jürgen Klopp’s side extend a top-flight run that has gained 10 points and successive clean sheets in the past four matches.

And though this will be his maiden experience of clashes with United, he already has a strong sense of the fixture’s huge importance to the club and supporters.

Read our pre-match interview with Gakpo below…

It’s 10 points from the last 12 in the Premier League. Do you feel that Liverpool are starting to put together a real run moving forward now?

Yeah, I think we had a tough period before, but yeah, I think we got back well together and started winning games and showing really the quality we have in the team. Let’s keep doing that.

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This is going to be your first experience of a Liverpool v Man United fixture. How much are you looking forward to it and what are you actually expecting from the game on Sunday?

Obviously for us it’s a big, big game, we need the three points again, especially at home, so we can continue the run we are making at the moment. It’s a big game, I think everybody knows it, so yeah, I’m really looking forward to playing this game.

How much do you know about the rivalry? How often would you have watched this game when you were growing up in the Netherlands?

I know it’s a big rivalry. I watched the games a lot, especially the big ones like this, when I was back in Holland. So I know a few things, but yeah, I think it’s a big difference when you play them yourself.

With scoring against Everton and winning that game, you’ve already had a sense of the extra buzz that the fans and the team and the club in general get from these games, haven’t you?

Yeah, for sure. After that game you already felt and saw how great this club is. It’s on us, the players, to keep improving, keep winning the games so we can keep this feeling.

In terms of yourself, it’s almost exactly two months now that you’ve been here at Liverpool. How would you assess how things have gone for you so far?

I think it was a difficult start for the team when I came in, we didn’t get the results we wanted to have. So that was a little bit difficult. And then for me to come in when it’s a little bit tough it’s also more difficult, but I think at the end the last games were better as a team and then you see that I also played better and I scored two goals. So that’s a good feeling for me personally and I just try to keep improving and helping the team where I can.

You have mentioned yourself and the manager has mentioned a couple of times that it was always going to take you a little bit of time to get used to your new teammates and the style of play. Do you feel that’s coming on as well?

Yeah, of course the more you play, the more you know each other and how everybody’s moving. So I think that’s also getting better every game I play. So, just keep playing and improving and enjoying the game.

The competition for places in attacking positions is getting stronger, it seems, by the week. Is that something you enjoy and relish, that extra battle for a spot in the team?

Yeah, of course. As you say, we enjoy it. I think it’s important to have and I think you eventually bring each other in a better position to improve. So I think that’s only a good thing and it’s also a good thing for the team that we have more quality.

Just finally, Virgil van Dijk was named in the FIFA FIFPro Men’s World 11 earlier this week. How pleased were you to see him in there as someone who’s played in two teams with him so far, and also with it coming after his long-term injury?

Yeah, I think it’s a big honour for him. I’m really happy for him because I see how hard he works in his free time, when he was injured, when he was coming back in the national team – that’s when I first really met him. So I really saw how good of a professional he was. Then at the World Cup and now here I see what kind of guy he is. So I’m really happy for him, he’s a really good guy. He also helped me a lot to settle in here. For that, I’m really grateful, but for the prize for him I’m really happy and I think he totally deserves it, especially after a long injury.