MADRID, 20 Feb. (EUROPA PRESS) –
Liverpool winger Cody Gakpo has assured that they are “prepared” to face the first leg of the Champions League round of 16 against Real Madrid this Tuesday at Anfield, in addition to stressing that they must try to “win at home and away ” to have options to eliminate the white team.
“These are the qualifiers, so there is a lot at stake. We want to show that we are a good team and that we are there again, so we will have to perform in this game and try to win at home and away,” he declared at a press conference, explaining that they are “prepared” to face the first duel against the madridistas.
The Dutchman, who will debut this season in the Champions League with the ‘red’ club, which he joined last winter transfer window, has scored in the team’s last two Premier League victories against Everton and Newcastle. “When you start to win games the environment is different,” he acknowledged. “It’s normal that confidence is coming back. I think we have a lot of confidence now and we’ll keep working hard to improve and keep winning games,” he continued.
In this sense, he believes that it is up to them to “maintain that intensity” that has allowed them to get out of the pothole in results they went through a few weeks ago. “When things get tough, the real team comes out. We are very close and even though it’s been tough, we’ve tried to be positive and keep helping each other through tough times. I think we started winning games again just in time and now we have a great opportunity to show that we are back on the right track,” he said.
Regarding the team, he assured that “the group is very good” and that one of its “strong points” is that it remains “united” in the face of difficulties, and that now it must prove it in the ‘Champions’. “I think it is one of the most important competitions in Europe and in the world. Playing in this competition is every footballer’s dream, and for me to have that opportunity is fantastic. But we have to focus on the game,” he warned.
Lastly, Gakpo spoke about his adaptation to the English team after arriving in December from PSV Eindhoven. “My teammates are incredible. From the first day they have helped me to adapt as quickly as possible. The whole club is incredible, they are all kind to me, they try to help me in everything they can and I am very grateful for that,” he said.
“It’s a great feeling to score the first goal knowing that it was a very important game for us and that it was the Merseyside derby, so it was a good way to debut as a goalscorer. I think that game was very important for us, to show that we have gone through a difficult period but that we are recovering,” he concluded.