Joe Gomez admitted that Liverpool's struggles in recent times have been tough, after he made his first Premier League start of 2025 in Sunday's win over West Ham.
Arne Slot's team went into the game at the London Stadium off the back of a run of nine defeats in 12 games, but produced a polished performance to earn a deserved 2-0 win.
The victory was made even sweeter by Alexander Isak breaking his Premier League duck for his new club, and Florian Wirtz producing his best performance of the season. Gomez, who contributed to Liverpool's first clean sheet on the road since September 14, hopes that the victory in East London triggers the start of a more positive period for the Reds.
"It’s been tough," Gomez said. "Everyone obviously takes it differently, for the boys who have just come it probably feels different to how I’ve seen it [in the past].
"Obviously there is a massive expectation at this club and you’ve got to feel the weight of the shirt and do your best for the badge, and we know that.
"We’ve been just as disappointed as the fans and the main thing is that we’re all in it together and we can feel that – we can feel their support, the boys feel it and it’s a balance of trying to not let it overwhelm us and take over us, and hopefully today can take us in the right direction."
Joe Gomez applauds Liverpool's supporters after the win at West Ham
Gomez applauds Liverpool's supporters after the win at West Ham (Image: 2025 Liverpool FC)
Gomez's start against West Ham was his first in the Premier League since December 2024. The 28-year-old missed the second half of last season due to a serious hamstring injury, and although he has been in all of Liverpool's gameday squads in the top flight since the start of this season, a knee problem has restricted him to cameo appearances.
On being handed a first start of the season, Gomez added: “It means a lot to me.
“Last time I was here it’s where I got my first injury (a hamstring injury he sustained during a league game last December), but I do everything I can to stay available and try to help the squad, that’s the main thing.
“The main thing is us sticking together, it’s a tough schedule now, back-to-back, and we’ve just got to go again, and we’ll do that.”