Liverpool given food for thought as £21m target shows true colours in Angel Gomes gesture

One of England ace Angel Gomes’ team-mates handed over penalty duties to the 24-year-old during Lille’s latest outing, giving potential suitors Liverpool food for thought

Jonathan David bagged a hat-trick at the weekend – but gave up the chance for a fourth from the spot to team-mate Angel Gomes.

Canadian sharpshooter David has long been scoring goals in Ligue 1 and has continued this campaign, with five strikes in his opening six outings. The 24-year-old has been linked to a move to Liverpool in recent days, having already attracted interest from Arsenal.

However, during his latest appearance against Le Havre, David sent a message that might have confused suitors. His hat-trick showed the forward’s fine goal-scoring prowess, but when offered the chance of a fourth after team-mate Gomes was tripped in the box, he turned down the chance.

Instead, he allowed the man who Lee Carsley handed an England debut last month to step up – and subsequently miss. David may be praised for his three goals and his generosity in giving a peer a chance to score, but the Reds could be put off by the fact that a striker of the 24-year-old’s calibre didn’t claim the spot-kick for himself.

David spoke about his actions after the game. “It’s true that I am someone who is quite generous, perhaps even too kind,” David said. “I may need to work on this more selfish side of my game, more of a killer. Perhaps I am not selfish enough. It’s something to think about for the future”

“It’s true that I could have taken it [the penalty]. I tried to make a gesture towards him because I think he had a very good match and that he deserved a little more.

“He made some good chances that we didn’t manage to convert. He deserved something. That’s why I give it to him. Today, he didn’t score and the question arises, but it will go in next time”

Gomes won the penalty deep into added time after being tripped by Le Havre goalkeeper Arthur Desmas. Given he could be among the names for the Golden Boot, David was expected to step up for his fourth.

Yet, as stated, he chose to offload his normal responsibilities to his English colleague, whose relatively poor shot to the ‘keeper’s right was saved. As a direct comparison, a match between Chelsea and Everton back in April put the ‘killer’ instincts of Cole Palmer to the test – and one of the league’s finest did the opposite to David.

The 22-year-old, having bagged a 30-minute hat-trick in a 6-0 thrashing of Everton, stepped up to take a second-half spot-kick to bring his tally to four, choosing not to give the opportunity to any of his Blues peers.

Though the two are different players, if Liverpool and Slot enter the market for a striker in the future, they could either be encouraged by the Canadian’s kindness or put off by a lack of ruthlessness that it evidently takes to prosper in the Premier League.

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