Cody Gakpo has rebuffed talk regarding his future as he looks to remain solely focused on the World Cup.
The Netherlands forward has been one of the stars of the tournament so far which has seen interest in him mount. Gakpo excelled last term at PSV and opted to remain with the Dutch outfit in the summer despite interest from Manchester United and Real Madrid.
Gakpo has scored three times in Qatar, which has seen talk intensify over his future with his reputation on the rise. Some clubs may look to act in January and pursue the 23-year-old in the New Year but the forward sees no need to discuss it whilst on international duty.
“I have to be honest, I am not thinking about that now,” he told The Athletic. “I am focused on the tournament and want to keep performing well, to keep helping the team. Hopefully when we become world champions we can think about other things. I try to keep focused and the other players don’t really speak about that kind of thing.”
United and Madrid appear to be the two clubs most likely to make a move for Gakpo. The Red Devils find themselves needing a striker after Cristiano Ronaldo's sudden exit and would benefit from having a forward who was comfortable playing through the middle.
Virgil van Dijk though has made his thoughts clear, reminding his compatriot that United and Madrid are - currently - not comparable.
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He said: “Are Manchester United and Real Madrid on the same level? No disrespect, not at all. I definitely think he has that next step in him. I definitely feel like it could happen, whether that is in the winter or the summer or next year, time will tell. He is a great boy who works hard, very talented and definitely there is more in him. We are so pleased he is doing so well for us. Long may it continue.”
Gakpo had previously offered a cryptic response when discussing his future. “As it stands now, I will still be playing for PSV after the winter break,” he told De Telegraaf. “But as I said before the start of the World Cup: we will see what will happen.”
PSV chief Marcel Brands has said that the Dutch giants would consider selling their prized asset come the summer. He also stated that United didn't match their valuation previously - otherwise they'd have let him go. "If [Manchester] United offered the money that we wanted to have for Cody, then we would’ve sold him," he said. "You cannot stop him then. With bonuses, we wanted to go up until €50m."
