Liverpool's Summer Transfer Strategy: Wingers and Gakpo's Future
Liverpool’s summer plan has been clear from the start: rebuild the wings with elite one-v-one talent.
Mohamed Salah’s exit on a free has left a crater on the right side of the attack, and despite the fanfare around one major arrival, the job is nowhere near finished.
Liverpool rebuild the flanks – but need more
Richard Hughes has already moved decisively once, activating Victor Munoz’s £34m release clause to bring the Osasuna winger – and Spain World Cup winner – to Anfield. It’s a big move, a statement move, but it doesn’t close the book on Liverpool’s wide recruitment.
Far from it.
At least two more wide forwards are in play. Bradley Barcola has been the top target ever since Liverpool backed away from Yan Diomande, and the 23-year-old has remained the preferred option. The problem is Paris Saint-Germain’s stance.
PSG have set a starting price of £145m before they will even think about letting Barcola leave. That figure alone tells you how difficult this deal will be.
While that saga rumbles on, Liverpool have already tested the waters elsewhere. The newly crowned 2024/25 Premier League champions have launched their first moves for Brighton’s Yankuba Minteh, submitting two bids worth £50m and then £60m for the 22-year-old Gambian.
Brighton, typically stubborn sellers, are holding out. The Seagulls are understood to want £70m before they consider parting with the left-footer. Until that number lands on the table, Minteh stays put.
If Liverpool push those winger deals any further, something has to give. Outgoings will be needed to finance this level of business.
Gakpo emerges as the sacrifice
That brings the spotlight onto Cody Gakpo.
The Dutch forward, on wages of around £250,000 per week, has been repeatedly linked with Tottenham, and his name now sits at the centre of Liverpool’s balancing act. A fee of around £72m has been floated as the figure that could unlock his departure.
At 27, Gakpo is not an opportunistic punt for Spurs. He has long been admired by Roberto De Zerbi, who is reshaping his entire frontline in north London.
Manchester City pair Savinho and Omar Marmoush are set to feature for Spurs this season, forming the early pieces of De Zerbi’s attacking rebuild. Gakpo is being lined up as the final major addition to that new-look front line.
Transfer specialist Fabrizio Romano has now raised the temperature on the story, suggesting that a move could be close.
“Don’t forget Cody Gakpo, because Savinho is going to Tottenham in London for medical tests and contract signing,” he told his YouTube audience, setting out the picture at Spurs.
“Omar Marmoush is expected to go to Tottenham as a centre striker, and he’s a target that is probably going to happen in the next days, as I told you.
“But I told you always: right winger, left winger, centre striker. This was what I told you about Tottenham. And for the left winger, the name remains Cody Gakpo.
“Tottenham are working on it. Tottenham are working on the player side. Player terms are not an issue. And then Tottenham remain absolutely on it on the club side with Liverpool.
“So, Gakpo to Tottenham could be over in the next days if the total deal can be agreed.”
The message is clear: personal terms are effectively in place, and the focus is now on Liverpool and Spurs finding common ground on the fee.
From title winner to expendable asset
Gakpo only arrived at Anfield from PSV in January 2023 and played a major role in Liverpool’s 204/25 Premier League title-winning campaign, thriving in a fluid front line and looking every bit a long-term piece of the project.
Last season told a different story. The Netherlands international struggled to hit those same heights, and frustration grew in the stands. Sections of the fanbase began to call for a more ruthless approach and a new face in his position.
That shift in mood, combined with Liverpool’s aggressive pursuit of wide reinforcements, has pushed Gakpo towards the exit door.
If Liverpool can finally break PSG’s resistance and bring Barcola to Anfield, the Frenchman is expected to take Gakpo’s place in the pecking order on the left. Andoni Iraola already has Rio Ngumoha and Munoz available for that flank as well, adding to the sense that the Dutchman is becoming surplus to requirements.
Liverpool want more one-v-one dynamism out wide. Tottenham want a proven, versatile attacker to complete De Zerbi’s front three.
If the numbers line up, Gakpo may soon find himself swapping Anfield for north London, and Liverpool’s reshaped attack will step into the post-Salah era without him.
