Arne Slot’s Liverpool’s 2025/26 campaign got off to a bad start as they lost to Crystal Palace in the Community Shield on Sunday – and the Reds supporters, despite goals from their summer additions Hugo Ekitike and Jeremie Frimpong, are not happy with one player’s performance in the Wembley showpiece.
Florian Wirtz – alongside the aforementioned duo of Ekitike and Frimpong – all impressed as they prepare for their first minutes in the Premier League, which begins with the reigning champions hosting Bournemouth at Anfield on Friday night. But it was misery for the Reds in the capital.
Jean-Philippe Mateta’s coolly taken penalty and Ismaila Sarr’s goal were not enough for Oliver Glasner’s men in regulation time, but Justin Devenny’s brilliant spot-kick made sure they won the trophy against Liverpool, whose supporters are not holding back in their assessment of who they believe is the club’s weak point.
Liverpool Fans Slam Player’s Community Shield Performance
‘He is killing the fluidity of the team and slowing everything down’
Ekitike’s nonchalant play, Wirtz’s ability to link between the lines and Frimpong’s tireless running were all key talking points throughout the 90 minutes of action, but as was the performance of Cody Gakpo, who began the game as his side’s outlet on the left wing.
The Dutchman would be the first to admit that he didn’t enjoy his finest display against the Eagles – and that’s highlighted further in his numbers. He took 43 touches, four of which were taken inside Palace’s penalty box, but Glasner’s back line were seldom troubled.
His passing, too, was underwhelming. He boasted an 80% (20/25) success rate when attempting to link up with his fellow teammates; and his ground duel success rate also makes for grim reading. Of his five duels on the floor, he won just one.
Earlier in the summer transfer window, it was reported that Vincent Kompany’s Bayern Munich were keen admirers of the Dutch winger, who has played 128 times for Liverpool since his arrival from PSV Eindhoven in the summer of 2023.
cody gakpo
Fans, as alluded to, are not very pleased with the 1999-born star’s performance in the English capital. “Gakpo is killing the fluidity of the team and slowing everything down,” one supporter wrote on X (formerly Twitter) as another said: “Gakpo has to speed things up and make a decision quicker.”
Comparing him to Liverpool’s new striker Ekitike, who thrived when drifting out to the left-hand side, a third member of the Anfield faithful said that Gakpo’s ability in one-on-one situations makes for pretty poor viewing. Frustrated at his lack of threat, they wrote:
“Man, Ekitike is already better 1v1 than Gakpo and he’s not even a proper left winger.”
Gakpo would end up with G/A somehow but this guy is so frustrating man,” another said, before a fourth fan added: “Gakpo visibly the worst person on our team.” One, for all the wrong reasons, believes he stuck out like a sore thumb. “Gakpo is the odd one out in this Liverpool team,” they wrote.
