'Tame and weak': Liverpool player blasted by BBC pundits after 'poor' moment against Brentford today
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Liverpool couldn’t break through against Brentford during a tight first-half in West London on Saturday.
The Reds headed into the game desperate to change their record of being yet to win in the Premier League during 2025.
They certainly had their chances in the opening 45 minutes, peppering 19 shots on Mark Flekken’s goal.
However, despite some good individual performances, Liverpool just couldn’t find the net.
While some of those shots were more punts rather than anything meaningful, the best chance of the half fell to Cody Gakpo.
But after Gakpo slid a shot wide after being put through one-on-one with Flekken, the Dutchman was criticised by both Chris Sutton and Martin Keown.
Cody Gakpo blasted for ‘poor’ Brentford finish
Liverpool could easily have been behind inside just a few minutes for a second game in a row.
Had Mikkel Damsgaard made contact with Bryan Mbeumo’s ball across the box, they probably would have been. From there on, though, the half really belonged to Liverpool.
The best move of the game came all the way back from Alisson Becker, and after Liverpool worked the ball forward, Gakpo’s big switch to Salah opened up the space.
The 25-year-old then raced into the box and into all sorts of room. Salah was always going to find him but when his slided ball across the box eventually landed at Gakpo’s feet, he dragged the finish weakly wide. Analysing the shot for BBC Sport, Keown wasn’t impressed.
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“It goes form one end to the pitch to the other,” said the former Arsenal defender. “A poor finish from Cody Gakpo. A fascinating game, both managers with great spirit and they’re both so desperate to win this game.”
“Liverpool cannot keep passing up opportunities like they are,” Sutton weighed in. “Brilliant work, devastating on the counter. Mark Flekken does brilliant to narrow the angle but Cody Gakpo’s effort is tame and weak. How many chances are Liverpool going to waste?”
Liverpool’s attack fails to fire
After failing to start well in the past few Premier League matches, Liverpool fans were hoping for better on Saturday.
And although they invariably got it during a decent first-half display, it was still a relatively tough watch.
Liverpool’s attack has been good this term and it should be remembered that they are the top scorers in the league so far.
But having said that, chances like Gakpo’s are being passed up far too easily on a weekly basis.
As well as Gakpo, Luis Diaz was incredibly poor against Brentford. Having been sent through the middle again by Arne Slot, Diaz toiled at the Gtech Community Stadium. More cutting edge is badly needed.
