Cody Gakpo, Olivia Smith Named Liverpool Player of the Month For January
Both players helped their teams through an excellent January.
Cody Gakpo won his first Standard Chartered Player of the Month trophy for January. He scored four goals and picked up an assist during the seven out of eight games that he played in last month. He scored the opening goal in the 2-2 draw against Manchester United, followed by a brace against Ipswich Town, and finally a goal in their Champions League loss against PSV.
“It’s always amazing to get voted by the fans,” Gakpo said in response to winning his prize.
“It’s a recognition by the fans for the hard work you put in for the team and I think it’s always nice to get that. I think normally it’s Mo [Salah], which makes sense! But I am very happy that I can win this one.”
On the women’s side, Olivia Smith continues her domination of the award since her move to Merseyside from Sporting CP. This is her third time winning in her inaugural season with the Reds. She also bagged the prize in September and October 2024.
She scored two goals and one assist in the the team’s three games last month. Her strike against Brighton was nominated for the goal of the month as well. An assist for Leanne Kiernan against West Ham United in the FA Cup helped Matt Beard’s women move onto the fifth round of the competition.
The 20-year-old Canadian powerhouse has already scored five goals in her first 16 games with the team, and she doesn’t look to be slowing down.
”It’s amazing. It’s an honour to receive these awards and obviously it wouldn’t be possible without the team. Overall, the month was amazing and I think it’s just a great start [to] the year,” Smith said.
The men are sitting atop the Premier League table and are looking forward to both the League Cup final and the start of the knockout round of European competition. The women are currently in 7th place, but only three points off of fifth. Last season, they ended up in fourth place, but that looks out of their reach at the moment. They’ve also made it into the quarterfinals of the FA Cup, a match they’ll play against Arsenal in March.
Source: liverpooloffside.sbnation.com
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