Peter Crouch suggests fans could have turned on two Liverpool players, after ‘difficult’ starts at Anfield

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Liverpool fans showed how special they are by not turning their backs on Darwin Nunez and Cody Gakpo this season.

Both Nunez and Gakpo had tricky beginnings at the club following their arrivals over the last year. But having come through bad spells, both have gone on to show plenty of promise.

One man who knows a thing or two about struggling at Anfield is former Red Peter Crouch. The 6ft 7in striker failed to score in 19 matches after signing for Liverpool in 2005. Drawing on that experience while speaking to The Anfield Wrap, Crouch explained how the support of the Reds fans got him through it.

“I’m so pleased that I managed to come through that period and many a club wouldn’t have allowed me to come through that,” said the 42-year-old. “That’s why I think Liverpool is such a special place. I don’t think any club in the UK and England especially would have accepted a player not scoring for that long. I see it with Nunez, I see it with Gakpo, players who might have a difficult start, and the fans in any other club would have turned.

“Usually other clubs will turn on the manager or a player and I just never felt that for a second. That’s why players who might have a slow start are in the best place to succeed. We’ve seen it so many times over the years at Liverpool where players might start slowly and then become real club legends.”

Reds stay patient with Nunez and Gakpo

Such is the way of modern football, Crouch is – unfortunately – probably right here. Supporters and media have no patience anymore. If a player doesn’t hit the ground running immediately, he’s written off as a flop.

Sometimes that’s fair. Occasionally you can tell that a player simply isn’t ever going to be good enough. But more often that not, it’s completely unrealistic to expect huge things straight away, no matter the size of the transfer fee.

Thankfully, Liverpool are definitely more patient than most in this regard. It helps that they currently have a manager who sees the bigger picture and knows that he has time to implement a proper system at the club.

But more than that, Reds supporters will often give new players the benefit of the doubt. As long as they show the correct attitude towards learning, they’ll be given the time they need to bed in.

Where Nunez and Gakpo are concerned, it looks likely that the former will need to draw on that more than the latter.

After an initial tough spell, Gakpo now looks like a perfect fit at Liverpool. Tactically well coached and bright as button, the Dutchman feels like he’s now well-set to show his true self at the club.

For Nunez, things may take a little longer. Of course, fans shouldn’t have to wait forever and there comes a point where you have to accept things aren’t going to work. That remains some way off for the Uruguayan, though. Crouch came good after an even more difficult beginning 18 years ago. We’ve no doubts that Darwin will do the same.