Cody Gakpo Leads the Premier League for his Strongest Stat

Yes, it has only been one match. But if Cody Gakpo can continue delivering at a league-leading rate for his main strength, sparks will fly

No wonder Jeremie Frimpong looks impressed

It has been a difficult summer for everyone at Liverpool. The team that won the league is rapidly changing into something different, something new. Maybe something better eventually, though not yet.

A penny for Cody Gakpo’s thoughts. The arrival of Florian Wirtz, Hugo Ekitike and maybe Alexander Isak has inevitably drawn focus. Mohamed Salah will always do likewise because, well, just look at his record. If not a forgotten man exactly, Gakpo will inevitably struggle to draw too much attention in this climate.

He has been doing his best to arrest this. The Netherlands international led the squad for combined shots and chances created per 90 minutes in pre-season (in the matches for which data was available).

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Gakpo also scored four goals, netting against Preston, Milan and Athletic Club (twice). He wasn’t perfect, though; the 26-year-old scored an own goal against the La Liga outfit, then was muscled off the ball too easily when Crystal Palace regained possession to equalise for a second time at Wembley.

While not the same, it brought to mind his half-hearted attempt to stop the Nottingham Forest counter that led to Liverpool’s only league defeat at Anfield last season. Perhaps Arne Slot needs to remind Gakpo to play like a man who stands 6’ 2” tall, even if he is a little on the lean side.

Despite the flaws in his off-ball game, the former PSV Eindhoven man scored in the Premier League opener against Bournemouth. He has 1.15 goal contributions per 90 since the start of the summer, which is red hot form even if most of it occurring in pre-season pours water on his fire.

We shouldn’t draw any firm conclusions from one match week of a new league season. Equally, we should take encouragement from something positive, watching out to see if it repeats or fades into obscurity over the weeks ahead.

There’s a metric on Opta Analyst’s Premier League stats page for 2025/26 which has Gakpo sitting atop the standings. Even though his rate will prove unsustainable, the Reds’ new-look attack will benefit from a skill he used to devastating effect in the Eredivisie.