Semenyo was very good the other night, and Bournemouth were at it too. You can give a nod to Iraola there because his side looked like they knew exactly where the space was and how to hurt teams when the tempo opens up.
Watching them go at Manchester United’s back line, it had that “open for business” feel about it. Not in a flukey, one-off way either. More like a team with a plan spotting a weakness and repeatedly leaning on it until it creaks. That’s usually the sign of decent coaching rather than just a hot streak from a forward.
Is Semenyo an “upgrade”, or just a proper challenger?
For Liverpool, the interesting bit isn’t just whether Semenyo is a good player. It’s what he would represent in the squad: another attacker who can push the lads already here.
I’m not having the “upgrade on Gakpo” talk as a nailed-on conclusion. Not yet. Gakpo’s a good footballer, and we’ve already seen how he responds when there’s a proper scrap for places. Last season, the Diaz and Gakpo competition brought the best out of both at different moments. One starts a run, the other answers back. That’s how you keep standards high across a long campaign.
So the better question might be: why couldn’t a Semenyo and Gakpo dynamic do the same? If you’ve got two options who give you different looks, you’re not just picking a “better” player, you’re picking the right tool for the job on the day.
Why Liverpool can’t lose that winning mindset
On Iraola, I actually like him. Bournemouth look organised, brave in possession when it’s on, and aggressive when the opposition wobble. That’s not nothing.
But if we’re talking about Liverpool, I do still lean towards managers who’ve been on the winning side of the journey themselves. We’re not a club shopping for “interesting”. We’re a winning club now, and that’s down to what Jurgen Klopp rebuilt and what Arne Slot has to protect and grow.
It matters that Slot arrived having already won before. Same with Klopp, and even Rafa back in the day. They know what elite demands feel like, not just what they look like from the outside. Truth is, that mindset seeps into everything: training standards, selection, how you react after a bad half, how you handle expectations when you’re the one everyone wants to knock off their perch.
Competition is the point
Liverpool don’t need to collect names for the sake of it. What we need, season after season, is a squad where places are earned and kept. If Semenyo-type competition lifts Gakpo the way Diaz did, that’s not a problem. That’s the whole idea.
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