Liverpool look to have secured the services of rising star Cody Gakpo after PSV Eindhoven released a statement confirming that a transfer agreement has been reached between the clubs.
News broke shortly after their 3-1 win at Aston Villa that the Reds were in 'advanced negotiations' for Gakpo with the ECHO reporting that the initial fee will be around £37m with add-ons likely to take the transfer well past £40m. Within an hour, PSV confirmed the move on social media and in an official statement.
Jurgen Klopp's side are said to have ramped up negotiations with the Dutch club after the news of Luis Diaz's extended layoff, understanding the need to act decisively in order to hijack Manchester United's own pursuit of Gakpo. It has the hallmarks of the deal Liverpool pulled off to sign Diaz from Porto last January.
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There were reports that United wanted Diaz before the Colombian headed to Anfield. But the Red Devils have certainly been in for Gakpo with their manager Erik ten Hag a long-time admirer of his fellow Dutchman.
It must have come as some surprise to United fans, then, to see their rivals go from one of many interested parties to the confirmed destination of Gakpo. And, as you can, they took to social media to express their unhappiness.
But perhaps it was best summed up by four tweets from the same fan that were highlighted after the news emerged that Gakpo was heading to Merseyside and not Manchester...
The PSV statement read: “PSV and Liverpool FC have reached an agreement on the upcoming transfer of Cody Gakpo. The 23-year-old attacker will immediately leave for England where he will undergo the necessary formalities to complete the transfer. Both clubs are not making any announcements about the transfer fee.”
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