Curtis Jones says Liverpool players ‘love’ when 24-year-old is in the team with them

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Curtis Jones has claimed that there’s one player who the whole Liverpool squad love to see on the pitch.

Jones is the man of the moment today. Having scored a wonderful brace against West Ham United last night, the 22-year-old has seen praise arrive from all angles.

But speaking to LFCTV after the 5-1 Carabao Cup win, Jones also wanted to point out the contribution of Liverpool teammate Cody Gakpo.

“With Cody, he’s a player that the whole team knows you give him the ball and he will never ever give it away,” raved the midfielder.

“There’s a couple of times he’s criticised because he might not score as many goals, but he does so much in the game that fans might not actually see. He’s a player that the whole of the team loves when he’s in the team.”

Jones puts Gakpo in the spotlight

This is great praise for Gakpo and is a message to those who are indeed expecting more goals from him.

Even when he isn’t sticking it in the net, the Netherlands international adds a lot to Liverpool’s play. Good in possession and with a sharp football brain, Gakpo is a real footballer’s footballer.

Thankfully, he did also manage to get on the scoresheet last night. You can be as popular as you want with your teammates, but as a forward you also need to be scoring.

Gakpo did that last night, and with a strike that Jurgen Klopp described as being ‘really special’, to boot.

If you can contribute meaningfully to Liverpool’s build-up as well as getting goals yourself, there’s nothing more to be asked of you. In essence, you’d essentially be Roberto Firmino. That’s what the Brazilian did for years for the Reds.

Clearly, Gakpo is still a long way from having the influence that Bobby always had on Liverpool.

But there is something that the Dutchman adds which the legendary No.9 never could, and Curtis was on the receiving end of it last night.

Having conducted a post-match interview for Sky Sports together, Gakpo took time out to praise his younger teammate before handing him the Man of the Match award. It was a lovely moment that illustrated Cody’s leadership qualities.

The 24-year-old is clearly popular with his teammates and it shows. Add all of those things together, and Gakpo might just be the full package.