There is a bit of discussion surrounding Cody Gakpo, as in whether or not he deserves the criticism he received last season.
Did he become the default whipping boy whilst other under performing players escaped such a pile on? Some of the criticism was directed because of his nationality, as in Slot being unwilling to bench a fellow Dutch man. That piece, at least, was incorrect.
The truth is, Cody underperformed in a piss poor season. At times he simply looked as if he wasn’t good enough. People who wanted Darwin Nunez sold the season before started making comparisons, as in Darwin would offer more to the team. He is the latest player to polarise views amongst supporters.
Origi, Jones, Shelvey, Nunez, even Trent in recent years have raised hackles when discussing their worth to the team. And Mo Salah, a club legend polarised views at times last season. No one escapes.
@Mascot raised the ghost of Lucas in another thread, prompting this discussion.
Lucas was subject of some heated debate on the TIA forum. His supporters, Grk Stav, Budski, Cardiffpete et al waxed lyrical about his value to the team whilst his detractors, myself included saw him as a symptom of a club accepting mediocrity. He wasn’t good enough, in my humble opinion. Park in the Jason McAteer bay of really nice lads who would die for the team, but really not good enough to play in a team challenging for honours.
As supporters, are we allowed to critique performance? Absolutely.
Are we guilty of biases against particular players? Absolutely. In this instance we might all agree that Poulsen, Konchesky, Voronin and a few more weren’t Liverpool quality players.
In light of Mane, Firmino, Salah, Suarez, Gerrard et al, is Gakpo or Nunez that sort of quality? The answer is no. But both of those lads contributed to Title No 20. So, like Arne Slot they are entitled to our respect.
Is Gakpo deserving of being the new whipping boy?
Or are we just frustrated and taking our dissapointment out on an easy target?
