'That's it' - Ruud van Nistelrooy sends Liverpool clear tactical message over 'quick' star

Arne Slot insists he has his opinion on the matter that has been hotly debated. We will only know the answer when the head coach is in the Liverpool dugout and has Cody Gakpo back for duty.

The 25-year-old was one of the standout players at Euro 2024. He was the Netherlands’ talisman who took them to the semi-finals of the competition before being beaten by England. The Reds forward scored three goals, which saw him share the Golden Boot. He would have won the prize outright having appeared to have netted the winner in the 2-1 quarter-final triumph over Greece but it instead went down as a Mert Mulder own goal.

In truth, Gakpo’s performances at the Euros were of the quality that Liverpool fans have been yearning for. Since his £37 million arrival from PSV Eindhoven in January 2023, he has been solid rather than spectacular, scoring 23 goals in 78 appearances. Gakpo has largely been deployed as a striker despite scoring 13 times and creating 17 during the first half of 2022-23 for PSV operating as a left-winger.

That is the role that he also functioned in for the Netherlands and it will be intriguing to see how he’s used under Slot when he reports for pre-season following a holiday. Speaking at his first press conference, Liverpool’s new supremo insisted he already knows where Gakpo can be at the peak of his powers.

Ruud van Nistelrooy was Gakpo’s manager during his scintillating six months at PSV. And according to Gary Neville, the former Real Madrid striker - who has joined Erik ten Hag’s coaching staff at Manchester United - is adamant that Gakpo must be used on the flank.

Speaking on The Overlap, Sky Sports pundit Neville said: “I went to speak to Ruud just after he first got to Liverpool and he was struggling a little bit. I asked him about Gakpo because United were looking at him, and he said: ‘He’s a left winger, that’s it’.

"So when Klopp was playing him as a false nine or centre-forward or a bit deeper in midfield at times, Ruud had him at PSV Eindhoven and said: ‘He’s absolutely a left winger’. You watch him for Holland, he looks quick. He runs with the ball, he’s direct. That run he did at the back post [against Turkey] he didn’t score because it was an own goal.”