The Japan international signed for Liverpool in the January transfer window.
It’s been a subdued first month or so for Takumi Minamino at Liverpool.
The 25-year-old joined the European champions in a £7.5 million deal last month [The Times] after impressing against the Reds during Champions League games for Salzburg.
So far, Minamino has made four appearances for Liverpool – including two starts – but he looks to be a player still getting to grips with Jurgen Klopp’s style.
But his centre-back team-mate Joe Gomez is confident he’ll be a success at Anfield, claiming that the Japan international is an ‘unbelievable addition’.
He told Sky Sports’ Soccer Am program, broadcast February 8: “He’s a happy, positive guy. He’s got a nice aura to him. “His desire to press and adapt to our style of play. The gaffer wants us to play a certain way and he has that tenacity about him, to want to get about and put pressure on. An unbelievable addition.”
A slow start by Minamino is hardly the most surprising thing in the world.
Not only has he moved to a new country and playing in a new league, but he’s also playing for arguably the best team on planet earth.
Liverpool won a FIFA Club World Cup title in December, after scooping a Champions League crown last June, and Klopp’s side boast a 22-point lead at the top of the Premier League.
This is a seriously good side and Minamino’s early struggles have to be taken in context.
Given his talent, there’s every chance that the winger – who scored seven goals in 11 starts during the first half of the campaign – will develop into a big player under the German manager.
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