Former Liverpool defender Glen Johnson has thrown his backing behind Cody Gakpo and believes he has a bright future at Anfield.
The forward was signed by the Reds at the end of December for an estimated fee of €40m (£35m) after a sublime World Cup campaign with the Netherlands. He failed to score in all seven of his first matches in a Liverpool shirt but has now scored six goals in 23 matches in all competitions, doing so while playing in a variety of different roles.
Johnson, who played as a right-back for Liverpool for six years between 2009 and 2015 and retired four years ago, says he sympathised with Gakpo during those difficult first few weeks on Merseyside and feels he will go on to be a top player for the Reds.
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“Cody Gakpo started quite slow, which is completely understandable as he moved to a new league mid-season,” he told BetFred.
“He’s starting to find his feet and despite him not reaching the heights that he’s capable of yet, I believe he’s going to be a great player and in certain games he’s looked really good going forward and I believe he’s only going to get better.”
Asked about Darwin Nunez's first season at Anfield, Johnson said: “I believe Nunez has shown great promise. I really like him as he wears his heart on his sleeve, he works his socks off, he’s quick and I believe he’s similar to Luis Diaz.
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