The Italian press have slammed Joe Gomez after the Liverpool defender endured an absolute horror show against Napoli on Wednesday night.
The Reds headed to Italy in search of a win in their opening group stage of game of this season’s Champions League.
Liverpool haven’t been at their best this season though and Jurgen Klopp will have been astounded with what he saw at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona.
Piotr Zieliński had Napoli ahead from the penalty spot after an early James Milner handball and it could have been 2-0 when Virgil van Dijk fouled Victor Osimhen inside the box, but Osimhen’s penalty was saved by Alisson.
Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa made it 2-0 though as he waltzed through the Liverpool defence, and two became three when KKhvicha Kvaratskhelia crossed for Giovanni Simone.
Zielinski compounded Liverpool’s misery with number four shortly after half time, with Luis Diaz’s goal little more than a consolation on a truly terrible night for the Reds.
The Italian press have slammed Joe Gomez
In truth, you could pick out a handful of Liverpool players who were absolutely all over the place in Naples.
Liverpool’s defending was shoddy throughout though and nobody typified that more than Joe Gomez.
Gomez has been in the team of late because of Joel Matip’s injury and has fared pretty well alongside Virgil van Dijk.
Yet it all came crashing down for Gomez on Wednesday night as he endured a complete horror show.
The tone was set in the first minute as Osimhen ran in behind Gomez’s blind side to round Alisson and hit the post.
Gomez then gave the ball away to Osimhen inside his own half and only a saving block from Van Dijk denied Kvaratskhelia on the line.
Gomez was again dispossessed in his own half, this time by Kvaratskhelia and didn’t track Zambo Anguissa’s run for Napoli’s second goal.
Remarkably, Gomez was then at fault for number three as well as he was outmuscled by Kvaratskhelia at the byline.
Maybe Gomez going off at half time for Matip wasn’t a huge surprise, as the England international was just absolutely all at sea.
The Italian press have pounced on Gomez’s display, with Tuttomercatoweb rating him at just three out of 10.
They called Gomez’s performance a ‘horror evening’ whilst comparing him to Santa Claus because he was giving gifts out to all the Napoli attackers.
TMW added that Gomez ‘never’ thwarted the Napoli forwards last night and was caught sleeping on ‘many’ occasions.
That was the lowest rating TMW handed out and the most scathing write-up, with Gomez enduring a disaster that may see him lose his place in the Liverpool side.
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