Cody Gakpo admits he understands being targeted for criticism last season at Liverpool - as he addressed almost leaving the club during the summer.
Impressive start under Iraola
Gakpo has been among the best performers during the early days under new Reds head coach Andoni Iraola, scoring two goals and providing four assists in six appearances.
The 27-year-old has taken his impressive form into the international break and netted a superb late equaliser to earn the Netherlands a 1-1 draw at home to Germany in their UEFA Nations League opener on Thursday.
Reflecting on last season's struggles
It is in stark contrast to last season, when Gakpo was among a number of players abused on social media and jeered inside Anfield as Liverpool flailed horribly under Arne Slot.
Asked if that treatment was unfair, he said: "I don’t know, because if you are at a big club like Liverpool, you need to perform.
"I don’t want to speak about somebody else or other players but, me, I know I could do much better than I did last year.
"So, I don’t know if it’s unfair. Maybe it was. But I get it from one point because at Liverpool, you need to win, you need to perform, you need to show that you are one of the best clubs in the world. We didn’t do that last year - me included."
Transfer speculation and personal struggles
Gakpo was afforded a chant from the Kop when scoring on his most recent Anfield outing in the Carabao Cup win over Tottenham Hotspur, and said: "Yes, I appreciated that."
Speaking to The Times, the forward always said it was "spot on" that he had decided to take on a fresh challenge in the summer - Tottenham were long-time suitors and Manchester City were willing to spend £85million on him - before Liverpool decided they wanted the player to stay as the September 1 deadline neared.
Gakpo was also asked about the summer when, while he was representing the Netherlands at the World Cup in the United States, his partner shared their baby boy had died during pregnancy.
"I don’t know if you want to go there because it doesn’t make any sense now to speak about this," he said. "But it was a difficult summer for me and my family, and everything surrounding football and life.
"I just let it come and it ended how it ended. I cannot choose. So then I have to just try to do what I’m good at, and that’s playing football. I can be very worried about everything that could happen, or that didn’t happen, or whatever, but that wouldn’t help the situation.
"Some things are out of our hands, and we have to do the things we can control to the best of our ability. That’s the only thing I can do. I just want to enjoy my life with my family and friends, and my life playing football with my team-mates (with the Netherlands) and at the club."
