Cody Gakpo's Future: Liverpool Faces Spurs Interest
Liverpool may be about to turn an underwhelming chapter into a lucrative one. Cody Gakpo, signed for under £45 million from PSV, is now being talked about as a £70m target for Tottenham – a sizeable profit on a player who has never quite settled into the role many at Anfield imagined for him.
On paper, the 27-year-old is everything a modern forward should be. He arrived from Eindhoven with a reputation for end product, capable of drifting in from the left or leading the line through the middle. In reality, Liverpool have seen those qualities in flashes rather than in long, convincing stretches. The Premier League experience is there. The consistency is not.
That gap between promise and delivery is what has opened the door for Spurs. They sense an opportunity. Liverpool, for the first time, might be listening.
Owen’s blunt verdict
Michael Owen, a man who knows both the weight of the Liverpool shirt and the scrutiny that comes with it, did not sugarcoat his assessment of Gakpo’s campaign when speaking to GOAL.
“Well, he was consistent last year, but consistently poor,” Owen said. “He had a good opening 10 games or something, but then for the rest of the season, he was pretty poor.”
It was a stinging line, but it captured the mood. Gakpo’s season mirrored Liverpool’s broader drop-off. There were moments, but too few to carry a side with ambitions of challenging on multiple fronts.
“Gakpo has already proven that he can be very effective in the Liverpool team,” Owen added. “But it was a concern, his performances last season, although it was a concern a lot of their performances. It was a poor season.”
That is the tension at the heart of Liverpool’s decision. They know what Gakpo can do. They have also lived with what he has actually done.
A squad puzzle for Iraola
The potential sale is not just about balance sheets. It is about bodies. Liverpool are already light in wide areas, and that reality shapes how bold they can afford to be.
“I don't think that's an impossible one,” Owen admitted when asked if Liverpool should entertain offers. “I just think Liverpool are probably... If they lose him, they're already desperate for wide men. If they lose him, are you going into the season relying on Rio Ngumoha? If you've got a replacement, then I can see it.”
That is the crux. Any decision to cash in on Gakpo has to be paired with a clear plan to replace him. Andoni Iraola, still moulding this Liverpool side in his image, cannot simply trade minutes for money. Not in an attack already in need of fresh legs and fresh ideas.
“It could happen,” Owen said. “At the moment, I think they're looking at adding, I'm not sure they're thinking of getting rid of too many players. His season last year was not very good. However, he has proven over time that he is very good. That's an up in the air one.”
Up in the air, but no longer unthinkable.
Spurs make their move
The interest from north London is real. Fabrizio Romano has reported that Tottenham are “in direct talks with Cody Gakpo’s camp over possible move this summer”, with any agreement hinging on the overall “financial package” and Liverpool’s ability to bring in reinforcements.
Spurs see a player still in his prime, still relatively affordable in a market where top forwards are scarce and expensive. For them, Gakpo represents upside: a versatile attacker, tested in the Premier League, with scope to be reshaped in a new system away from the shadows of Anfield expectations.
Liverpool, for their part, have been linked with Bradley Barcola. The France international’s situation at Paris Saint-Germain is being watched closely, with suggestions that an exit is becoming more realistic for the 23-year-old Champions League winner. If Barcola, or a similar calibre of forward, can be prised away, the logic of a Gakpo sale shifts dramatically.
Country vs club: the Gakpo question
Complicating everything is the version of Gakpo that keeps turning up for the Netherlands. On the international stage, he looks freer, sharper, more decisive. That contrast has not gone unnoticed.
He again impressed in bursts at the 2026 World Cup, reminding everyone why Liverpool fought so hard to sign him in the first place. The Dutch setup seems to draw more from him, tactically and psychologically.
When asked why he appears more consistent for his country than for Liverpool, the Eindhoven-born forward offered a simple explanation: “It’s a little bit different. How I play here, where the coach wants me to be, the freedom that I have at the club. That’s it basically.”
Different role. Different instructions. Different Gakpo.
Those words cut to the heart of the debate. Is he miscast at Liverpool, or is this just what he is at Premier League level? Can Iraola unlock the Netherlands version of Gakpo, or will someone else try?
A decision that shapes two attacks
Gakpo’s future will not be decided by spreadsheets alone. He has a major say in what happens next, weighing up which environment best serves his ambitions for both club and country.
Liverpool must decide whether to double down on a player who has already shown both his ceiling and his flaws, or to take the money and rebuild with someone like Barcola. Tottenham must judge whether they are buying a stalled talent ready to explode in new colours, or a risk at a premium price.
One way or another, this is no longer a quiet subplot. It is a transfer call that could reshape the forward lines of two clubs with Champions League ambitions – and define what kind of player Cody Gakpo becomes in the peak years of his career.
