Ex-Feyenoord boss Rob Jacobs has encouraged Liverpool to snap up Igor Paixao, boldly claiming he’s a step up from Cody Gakpo. Arne Slot, who acquired the Brazilian for Feyenoord in August last year, has witnessed Paixao grow into a standout performer.
The 24 year old attacking sensation has clocked up an impressive tally of 11 goals and 15 assists across 38 games this term, cranking his totals for the Dutch side up to 32 goals and 25 assists from 120 appearances.
Speculation about Paixao swapping Rotterdam for Merseyside had surfaced before, hinting at a potential reunion with Slot at Anfield. Jacobs, who donned the Feyenoord jersey before managing during the 88/89 season, is adamant Paixao would bolster Liverpool’s ranks.
He even made the striking comment that the left-winger outstrips Gakpo – despite the latter racking up a personal best of 16 goals this campaign for the Reds.
“Then I’ll go for Paixao. I really think he makes Liverpool stronger,” Jacobs expressed to 1908.nl. “Arne Slot should also enjoy his development. Gakpo is of course also a fantastic player and is doing well at Liverpool, but I think Paixao is better.
“It wouldn’t surprise me if Liverpool would report to Feyenoord. Hey, €40 million ($43M) or €50 million ($54M)? They don’t make a fuss about that in England. He is getting better every day. Incredibly goal-oriented, he is the most dangerous man at Feyenoord. Really nothing but praise, he scores magnificent goals.
“It’s not normal how he kicks that ball in! That’s how you punish a mistake. Pure class. He was not in the pre-selection of Brazil for nothing, that is quite an elite club.”
(Image: 2024 DeFodi Images)
Gakpo has returned to his favored left wing position under Slot, having regularly been deployed centrally by Jurgen Klopp. And he admits a sense of relief when he spoke to his boss for the first time.
“One of my first conversations with the manager here was about the position,” Gakpo told the ECHO. “I was wondering what he thought, because I knew also that I can do a lot better than I did before if I play in my right position.
“Obviously he knew me already from the Netherlands, and I’d just come back from the Euros which were good for me. He just said “you have to focus on the left wing, I’m not going tell you that you’re going play all the games because we have Lucho (Luis Diaz) and other players who can come in and play who are really good, but if you come in or if you play, this is most likely the position you will play.”
