Cody Gakpo on new goals, forwards, Singapore and Leicester friendly
Cody Gakpo is soaking up the details of his first pre-season with Liverpool as he aims to build upon his opening seven months at the club.
A January recruit from PSV Eindhoven, the Netherlands international scored seven times for the Reds during the second half of 2022-23.
He is currently in the midst of his maiden summer as part of Jürgen Klopp’s squad, who are now out in Singapore as their preparations for the new campaign ramp up.
Gakpo and co take on Leicester City at the National Stadium on Sunday and then face Bayern Munich next Wednesday – with both games live on LFCTV and LFCTV GO.
Ahead of the meeting with the Foxes, we sat down with Gakpo at the team hotel to get his thoughts on the welcome in Singapore, stepping up pre-season, the Reds’ forward options and why he sets himself targets.
Read the chat with Liverpoolfc.com below…
Cody, it’s day two in Singapore – how are you finding things?
Yeah, good – it’s a bit warm, hot outside. But it’s nice, the people are really nice. I like it here, so it’s nice.
It’s your first experience of a pre-season tour with Liverpool, so how nice is it to see the global fanbase the club has?
It’s really big and it’s really nice to see, there are fans all over the world. And they are really supportive so we really appreciate it.
It’s only two weeks now until the season starts away at Chelsea. How ready are you and the squad feeling as that game gets closer?
I think we are quite ready. We trained a lot in Germany; tough sessions, good sessions, tactical, everything. So yeah, we are getting there. At the end we have to be ready so we work towards that point and I think everybody is really excited to start the season again.
Has it helped you especially, because you didn’t get the chance for a pre-season as you joined midway through last season? Has the intensity of sessions helped you adapt even more?
Pre-season is always good to really adapt to the team and to learn the style of play as the manager wants to see. In pre-season you can go into more detail than you can do when you are in mid-season. So it helps a lot.
It’s Leicester on Sunday, with a new manager and changes for them. What are you expecting from the game?
It’s going to be a good game, we know Leicester obviously and it’s a good team. For ourselves it’s to check that we are as fit as we want to be and as ready as we are. [There are] some things left to do better and it’s a good match and we’re really looking forward to play.
In terms of the forwards, there must be a lot of positive energy within the group as you’ve all scored already in pre-season…
I think that’s important that the forwards get a goal as soon as possible. There’s a good atmosphere around everybody, I have to say, and we’re just really focused at the moment to start the season off really well. That’s what we are working for.
Are you someone who sets targets for yourself in terms of goals or assists ahead of a new season?
Yeah, I think it’s important to set some goals for yourself and as a team. That’s only to become a better player and do the best for the team.
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