Liverpool turn their attention back to the Premier League this weekend as they travel away from Anfield to take on Fulham at Craven Cottage this afternoon.
The Reds have the chance to move level on points with Arsenal at the top of the division, although they would need a big ten-goal swing in goal difference to go ahead of them, if they pick up all three points against Marco Silva's side.
Jurgen Klopp's men, despite winning the second leg 1-0, were knocked out of the Europa League by Serie A side Atalanta on Thursday night, and must quickly move on from that disappointment to bounce back in the Premier League.
Liverpool have also failed to win in their last two domestic outings, with a 1-0 defeat to Crystal Palace and a 2-2 draw with Manchester United, which is why it is so important that they return to winning ways today.
Klopp may look to make some changes to the starting XI that lined up against Atalanta last time out. With this in mind, the boss must unleash Diogo Jota over Cody Gakpo.
Cody Gakpo's goalscoring form
The Netherlands international was selected to lead the line, with Luis Diaz and Mohamed Salah either side of him, but he failed to register a single effort on goal.
He has only scored one goal, which came in a 3-1 win over Sheffield United, in his last seven matches for the club in all competitions, which speaks to his lack of goal threat.
The 24-year-old forward, who was signed from PSV in January of last year, has scored 21 goals in 74 appearances for Liverpool so far, but has only managed six strikes in 30 games in the Premier League this term.
Appearances
30
xG
6.33
Goals
6
Big chances missed
5
xA
1.6
Assists
3
As you can see in the table above, Gakpo is almost underperforming his xG and has been helped out by his teammates, who have scored three goals from 1.6 xA created by the former PSV star.
Quite simply, the right-footed attacker has not provided a consistent threat in the final third as either a scorer or creator of goals, whether that is down the left as a winger or through the middle as a centre-forward, in the Premier League.
The Dutch gem has not done enough to prove that he deserves to be a regular starter for the Reds through the middle of the pitch, and that is why the manager should drop him down to the bench for this clash with Fulham.
Jota must now be unleashed in his place as the Portugal international has the finishing quality to put Fulham to the sword this afternoon.
In fact, former Liverpool defender and Sky Sports pundit Jamie Carragher claimed in January that the forward is "clinical" in the final third and a better finisher than Salah, as well as legends Luis Suarez and Robbie Fowler.
Mohamed Salah's finishing this season
The Egypt international's finishing has not been at the peak of his powers in the Premier League for the Reds so far this season, with some wasteful displays from the attacker.
Over his last four league appearances for Liverpool, Salah has had an astonishing 23 shots on goal and scored one from open play and one from the penalty spot.
The experienced star has scored 17 goals from 26 matches in the top-flight, which is a solid return, but it has come from an Expected Goals (xG) of 18.27.
Salah has missed 13 'big chances' in the division and his xG underpeformance suggests that the attacker should have more goals than he has.
Appearances
38
xG
21.68
Goals
19
Big chances created
15
Assists
12
As you can see in the table above, the 31-year-old whiz also underperformed his xG in the Premier League last season, with 19 goals from an expected tally of between 21 and 22.
These statistics show that Salah's finishing has not been impressively efficient in the league over the last two campaigns, as he has missed 30 'big chances' and scored 36 goals from an xG of 39.95.
Jota, on the other hand, has been ruthless in front of goal for Liverpool and Klopp must unleash his lethal finisher from the start ahead of Gakpo this afternoon.
Diogo Jota's big xG overperformance
The Portuguese ace scored seven goals from an xG of 6.5 in 22 appearances and 12 starts in the Premier League during the 2022/23 campaign.
He made the most of the opportunities that his teammates created for him in front of goal throughout the season, and that has been the case once again this term.
Appearances
5
Starts
2
xG
2.08
Goals
3
Big chances created
2
Assists
0
As you can see in the table above, Jota has been efficient in the Europa League this season, with three goals from 2.08 xG in five outings before the Reds were knocked out of the competition on Thursday night against Atalanta.
His finishing in the Premier League has been even more impressive. The former Wolverhampton Wanderers star has fired in nine goals from an xG of 4.91 in just 13 starts, and 20 appearances in total.
Jota, who has also recorded four assists in that time, has two goals and one assist in his last four Premier League starts for Liverpool, and must be brought back into the XI.
His exceptional finishing quality, with 16 goals from 11.41 xG in the league since the start of last season, backs up Carragher's comment on him being a better finisher than Salah, who has been wasteful during the same period.
The Portugal international has proven that he has the ability to be ruthless and effective in front of goal when his teammates create high-quality chances for him, which is something Gakpo is yet to prove.
Therefore, the £140k-per-week star should be selected to lead the line for the Reds against Fulham this afternoon, as his statistics suggest that he is Klopp's best choice to fire his team to the win against the Cottagers.
