Following Jurgen Klopp’s exit, Liverpool’s competitors were determined to grind Arne Slot and his team between the titans of football.

It just hasn’t occurred. After just 14 games in all competitions, the Dutch tactician’s victory over Brighton & Hove Albion in the Carabao Cup on Wednesday night marked his 12th victory of the season.

It’s been quite something, and the Reds will go to Southampton in the cup competition’s quarterfinals with more assurance and a stronger conviction that they can win on all fronts this year.

The Seagulls, who will be shaking at the thought of playing the Merseysiders at Anfield in the Premier League on Sunday afternoon, were rather flattered by the 3-2 result.

With some of their forwards guaranteed to make an impact in any of the best teams in the world of football, Liverpool has one of the most impressive frontlines on the continent.

The fact that nobody received a nomination at the just concluded Ballon d’Or ceremony is a little unexpected.

The Ballon d’Or was not given to Liverpool.

The greatest elephant in the room is Mohamed Salah, who, despite being considered one of the best forwards in the world and having scored 33 goals and provided 21 assists in all competitions since the beginning of the previous season, did not even place in the top 30.

This content creator admits that there has been some indignation over Real Madrid star Vinicius Jr.’s loss to Manchester City’s Rodri in the individual prize tournament, even though the public thought the Brazilian should have won the golden ball.

Is this a travesty, really? Rodri is far superior to every other midfield player in the world. Known as a “true legend of the game” by Joleon Lescott, he is the lifeblood of Pep Guardiola.

Liverpool’s failure to find any single player in the discussion was frankly embarrassing, and an illustration of the gaping holes that this prestigious award carries.

Four centre-backs claimed the award ahead of Van Dijk, while the aforementioned Salah will be shocked at some of the like-positioned names that claimed placements ahead of him.

But this is nothing compared to the noise surrounding Vinicius Jr., with all of a Real Madrid persuasion flat-out refusing to attend the ceremony, despite winning a wealth of accolades after a trophy-laden 2023/24 campaign.

In fairness, the 24-year-old was incredible last year, instrumental in winning the Champions League and La Liga, notching 50 goal contributions for Los Blancos since the start of last year.

Additionally, according to FBref, he is extremely dynamic, ranking in the top 4% of positional peers in Europe’s top five leagues for shot-creating actions over the previous year, the top 7% for passes attempted, and the top 1% for progressive carries and successful take-ons per 90.

I wish Liverpool had a player of that caliber. In fact, they do: under Slot’s direction, Cody Gakpo has made great progress and provides a style that is not all that unlike from Vini’s.

The ascent of Cody Gakpo at Liverpool

Gakpo has been with Liverpool for almost two years after joining from PSV Eindhoven in January 2023 for an initial £35 million.

There were wobbles and patchiness during that tumultuous period. Liverpool had suffered a serious setback, and Gakpo found it difficult to adjust to life at Anfield.

Under the guidance of his Dutch compatriot, he has started to emerge as a truly dangerous forward. He scored twice against Brighton on Wednesday night to bring his total to four goals and two assists from just six starting appearances during the previous season, which was his first full year on Merseyside.

Gakpo, who was called a “superstar” by Carl Anka of The Athletic before dominating at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar and moving to Liverpool, has been getting better every season and appears to be a different animal under Slot’s system.

This is primarily because he established a well-known position on the left flank rather than using the all-covering strategy he used while working under Klopp.

Now, he may be jockeying for ascendancy with the mercurial Luis Diaz down the left wing, but at least he’s got a clear understanding of the role that he is to play – and play that role he has.

Gakpo’s pace, power and deceptive trickery make him a singular outlet for Liverpool, with his stunning opening strike against the Seagulls evidence of the cannon he has in his toolkit.

But he’s so much more than that. Among the top 2% of positional peers in Europe’s top five leagues over the past year for shot-creating actions, the top 10% for pass completion and progressive carries, the top 5% for progressive passes, and the top 1% for tackles and interceptions made per 90 (FBref), Gakpo is a versatile threat who is brimming with tactical dynamism.

As you can see, Gakpo is a player who shares Vinicius Jr.’s technical skill and keen match intelligence. According to FBref, the Brazilian is one of the players who most resembles the Dutchman in all five of Europe’s top leagues. He is also equally capable in a variety of positional deployments.

We can only hope that he can keep getting stronger in this fast-paced slot system. Anyway, let’s not wager against it.

Gakpo is beginning to demonstrate his abilities, and they are numerous. Why shouldn’t Liverpool aim for the stars this season, given that they have such talented players in a variety of positions?