Cody Gakpo's Central Role at Liverpool After Transfer Drama

Liverpool have ripped up the summer script for Cody Gakpo and handed him a central role in their season after a blockbuster move to Manchester City collapsed at the last moment.

For weeks, the Dutch forward looked destined to be one of the headline exits of the window. Fresh from an eye-catching World Cup with the Netherlands and a bright start to the 2026/27 campaign, he sat firmly on the list of players Liverpool were prepared to cash in on if the money was right.

It was.

Both Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur were ready to hit Liverpool’s asking price – a package worth around €100m, according to Dutch outlet Dagblad. The financial framework was in place, the conditions met, and Gakpo, faced with a straight choice between two Premier League heavyweights, opted for City as his preferred destination.

Then the door slammed shut.

Dagblad reported that Gakpo held talks with Liverpool’s owners on Tuesday, a meeting described as partly to “clear the air” after the shock breakdown of his transfer. Inside the club, the mood shifted. What had looked like a calculated sale suddenly became a decision they were no longer willing to make.

City had moved for Gakpo late in the window as a replacement for Savio, sensing an opportunity. Tottenham hovered too, ready to pounce if the Etihad move faltered. Yet Liverpool pulled rank. The club decided he would not be leaving for City – and, as the Dutch report underlined, there would be no alternative deal either.

Instead of a farewell, Liverpool have drawn up a new plan.

According to Football Insider’s Pete O’Rourke, Gakpo is now expected to play a “key” role for the rest of the season. The club did not bring in a replacement, and that decision speaks loudly about how they view his importance.

“Gakpo will be a key player for Liverpool this season, definitely,” O’Rourke said, pointing to his immediate impact: a goal against Newcastle on the opening weekend, followed by a sharp assist against Nottingham Forest. Early days, but the numbers back the eye test.

What has really changed the picture is his flexibility. Liverpool see a forward who can operate across the front line, drop into pockets, and link play in different systems. That kind of tactical elasticity is hard to buy and even harder to replace in the final days of a window.

“He’s such a versatile player for Liverpool, and I think that’s the key, Liverpool didn’t really want to lose that,” O’Rourke added. City’s “top dollar” offer was weighed, seriously. It just wasn’t enough to convince them to tear that versatility out of Andoni Iraola’s squad.

The manager’s stance proved decisive. As O’Rourke framed it, Liverpool’s refusal to sell “shows that Andoni Iraola did not want to lose the Dutchman, because he knows that he will play a key role for his side this season in any success they do have.”

From almost out of the door to locked in as a central pillar of the project, Gakpo’s summer turned on a single decision at the top of the club. The fee was there. The buyer was chosen. The path was clear.

Liverpool just decided they need his goals, his assists, and his adaptability more than they need the money.