Liverpool‘s rustiness over their last few games – which saw Arne Slot’s men exit the FA Cup in dramatic fashion to Plymouth Argyle and stumble to a 2-2 draw with bitter Merseyside rivals Everton – was very much on show again versus Vitor Pereira’s Wolverhampton Wanderers.
Indeed, the table-topping Reds ended up sneaking over the line to a 2-1 victory, despite racing into a comfortable two-goal lead in the first 45 minutes.
The well-known explosiveness of Matheus Cunha for the Old Gold would end up troubling Slot’s side, with many of Liverpool’s competitors to the Premier League title looking at the Brazilian this transfer window just gone as a viable buy.
Cunha’s standout display vs Liverpool
Wanted by the likes of high-flying Arsenal and Nottingham Forest during the recently closed window, Wolves would have breathed a big sigh of relief when their ex-Atletico Madrid star actually stayed put at Molineux, instead of opting for a move away.
After all, Cunha had a mega total of 11 goals and four assists heading into Sunday’s clash, with his goal total now up to an even more sturdy 12 after his bright afternoon at Anfield.
That curled finish would gift the away side a lifeline in a contest that was increasingly becoming more and more nervy due to a catalogue of errors from the home outfit, resulting in Cunha tallying up a mammoth six efforts on Alisson’s consistently shaky net.
Thankfully, Liverpool would get back to winning ways just come the full-time whistle, with Slot left to curse the fact one star attacker missed out last minute due to a fitness test failing, who could have been his faltering team’s own Cunha.
Liverpool’s very own Cunha
Slot definitely could have done with some more positive reinforcements in attack during a testing second 45 minutes, with Diogo Jota frustratingly firing blanks with just 20 touches of the ball, away from Luis Diaz and Mohamed Salah sharing out the crucial strikes.
Not having Cody Gakpo at his disposal would have hurt the former Feyenoord boss, with the Dutch attacker really coming into his own this season under a fresh set of ideas in the dug-out.
In total, the impressive 25-year-old forward has amassed eight goals and three assists across 24 Premier League appearances, meaning he could well have come in handy in attempting to kill off a spirited Wolves side.
Delving deeper into his FBref numbers also shows off his similarities to the constantly captivating Cunha, who was even deemed a “top player” by ex-Reds great Jamie Carragher, after his sublime goal stunned the Liverpool masses into silence to give Pereira’s visitors somewhat of a foothold in the back-and-forth affair.
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Gakpo’s FBref numbers over the last year vs Cunha’s |
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|---|---|---|
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Stat – per 90 mins |
||
|
Shots |
3.22 |
3.21 |
|
Shot-creating actions |
4.60 |
3.44 |
|
Progressive passes |
3.47 |
4.70 |
|
Progressive carries |
2.96 |
3.71 |
|
Successful take-ons |
1.74 |
2.06 |
|
Touches in attacking penalty area |
5.82 |
4.40 |
|
Progressive passes received |
11.38 |
5.85 |
|
Stats by FBref |
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Looking at the table above, it’s clear that both the Dutchman and the Brazilian are very similar players – as noted by FBref among those in the Premier League – in attack in terms of wanting to constantly be involved in matters up the pitch with constant shots peppering the opposition goal, alongside always wanting to advance play with a tricky dart forward.
Amazingly, Gakpo even betters Cunha when it comes to shots averaged per 90 minutes over the last year, on top of trumping him with shot-creating actions, meaning the 25-year-old might well have made his team’s win more comprehensive if he wasn’t injury-stricken.
The table-toppers will know they have struck gold with Gakpo’s signature, considering he is worth in the region of £50m now as per Transfermarkt, when he was once purchased for a more modest fee in and around the £35m mark.
Slot will be keeping everything crossed that Gakpo shrugs off his injury issues quickly to return back to the main team fold, with more nervy and tight games coming his team’s way not needed in the race to lift the Premier League title.
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