Last season was a difficult one for Liverpool, and there was perhaps no more player for whom it was individually difficult than Cody Gakpo, who struggled on the pitch and became a lightning rod for criticism of the team’s tepid and indecisive style while off the pitch his partner suffered a miscarriage.
It wasn’t entirely surprising to learn, then, that the 27-year-old might be looking for a change of scenery over the summer, with rumours first of Tottenham interest and then of Manchester City.
While
the player never agitated for a move, it was understood that it would be his preference, and Liverpool have entertained inquiries. Or at least they had. As of today, though, Gakpo will remain. That news comes along with word that the Reds have rejected an £80M bid for Gakpo from Manchester City.
The offer is believed to have been for a fixed £75M fee plus a further £5M in add-ons, which Liverpool would have needed to invest the entirety on to source a replacement, with Crystal Palace’s Ismaïla Sarr and Brighton’s Yankuba Minteh the most widely reported options.
For Liverpool this would have raised eyebrows given Sarr and Minteh would both cost in the region of £70-80M and neither player has goal contribution numbers even remotely close to Gakpo’s even last season, when he was by all accounts well off his best. As a result, Liverpool have signalled they will now no longer consider offers for the Dutch forward.
Hopefully a new manager at Liverpool and a more front-footed approach will help to get Gakpo back to his best in Red—nothing cures what ails you in football quite like winning—and if the player would still prefer a departure come January the situation can be reevaluated.
