Cody Gakpo's World Cup Brilliance and Liverpool's Dilemma
Cody Gakpo walked off the pitch with two more World Cup goals to his name and a question that cut straight to the heart of his career.
How different does he feel in orange compared with red?
“A good question. Obviously it's a little bit different,” he said after the Netherlands’ 5-1 demolition of Sweden, hinting at tactical tweaks and greater freedom before stopping himself short. The pause said as much as the words. At a time when Liverpool are reshaping their attack, Gakpo’s role for club and country has rarely felt further apart.
A left side getting crowded
The timing is impossible to ignore. In the same week Gakpo bent in another trademark finish from the left, Liverpool completed a £34.5m deal for Osasuna winger Victor Munoz, another player who prefers that same flank.
They are also pushing hard for Yan Diomande, the highly rated 19-year-old at RB Leipzig, with an £86m package on the table for a forward who can operate on either wing.
Two potential signings. Both comfortable in Gakpo’s territory. Both young, dynamic, and expensive.
The question hangs over Anfield: where does that leave a 27-year-old who, not long ago, looked like a pillar of Liverpool’s next era?
From title catalyst to searching for rhythm
Under Arne Slot in the title-winning 2024-25 campaign, Gakpo delivered the sort of numbers that justify building around him: 18 goals and seven assists in 49 games across all competitions. It earned him a long-term contract last summer, a deal he was understood to be delighted to sign.
Then came last season.
Three more matches, but a sharp drop: nine goals, six assists. He was not alone in underperforming during a difficult year, yet he will know that such returns do not protect you forever at a club with Liverpool’s ambitions and churn.
Gakpo’s preference is clear. He wants that left-sided berth, where he can receive the ball high, cut inside, and drive at goal. But the 2025-26 season exposed a fault line: his relationship with left-back Milos Kerkez. The pair often looked out of sync, struggling to fully exploit Kerkez’s aggressive overlapping runs.
Their understanding did improve as the season wore on. Now Kerkez is back under Andoni Iraola, the coach who first unlocked him at Bournemouth, and Liverpool expect the Hungary international to accelerate his development. If that combination finally clicks, it could transform Gakpo’s effectiveness on that flank.
It might also be exactly what he needs to keep his place.
Proven numbers, growing pressure
Strip away the noise and Gakpo’s Liverpool record still carries weight. Fifty goals in 180 appearances. Only one Dutchman has reached that half-century for the club before him: Dirk Kuyt.
When fit, he has usually been first choice. Inside the club, he is still viewed as a proven Premier League attacker, someone who can interpret different roles and structures. That versatility suddenly matters even more with Hugo Ekitike facing a long spell out, potentially until 2027, after rupturing his Achilles.
Gakpo can play centrally. He has done it often enough to give Iraola a genuine option through the middle as well as out wide. In a summer where Liverpool’s attack is being rebuilt on the fly, that flexibility is a powerful argument for keeping him.
Salah gone, a frontline in flux
Mohamed Salah’s departure has blown a hole in Liverpool’s front line. At least one more attacking signing is expected, and the Diomande pursuit is gathering speed.
Rio Ngumoha, the gifted teenager, is being lined up for a more prominent role. Florian Wirtz, who spent spells off the left for Liverpool last season and is currently operating there for Germany at the World Cup, adds another layer of complexity.
How Iraola sees Wirtz could prove pivotal. If the new head coach decides the German’s long-term home is that left-sided role, the squeeze on Gakpo intensifies. If Wirtz is moved inside or used more centrally, a lane opens again.
Competition has never frightened Gakpo. When Luis Diaz arrived, he responded by sharpening his game and raising his output. This might be another such moment. Or it might be the first real fork in the road of his Liverpool career.
A market watching closely
For the first time since he arrived from PSV Eindhoven in December 2022, a departure cannot be ruled out. Several clubs are monitoring his situation, with Tottenham Hotspur among those keeping a close eye.
Liverpool would not let him go cheaply. Any deal is expected to start north of £60m, a significant profit on the initial £35m they paid after his breakout 2022 World Cup.
His performance against Sweden underlined why that valuation is realistic. The first goal was about timing and instinct, ghosting in at the back post for a simple tap-in. The second was pure Gakpo: cutting in from the left, shifting the ball, and drilling a right-footed shot home with ruthless precision.
On a night when club team-mate Alexander Isak failed to score, Gakpo looked like the established heavyweight.
A leader in orange, a question mark in red
Inside the Netherlands camp, Gakpo is more than just a goalscorer. He is part of the squad’s spiritual core.
“Cody is our pastor – he leads the prayers,” said Crysencio Summerville, lifting the lid on his influence off the pitch.
On it, his record speaks loudly. Five goals in seven World Cup games across the 2022 and current tournaments. Twenty-three goals in 52 caps since his debut five years ago. Those are elite international numbers.
Virgil van Dijk, captain for both club and country, does not need convincing.
“He is an outstanding footballer,” Van Dijk said after the win over Sweden. “He works so hard for the team, he's disciplined and his quality stands out – his crosses, his assists, his goals.”
At this World Cup, Gakpo has started fast, looking liberated and decisive. For now, his focus is entirely on the Netherlands, where his role is clear and his status undisputed.
Liverpool’s gamble
Back at Anfield, the picture is more complicated. New coach. New structure. New signings incoming. An attack that laboured last season now being pulled apart and reassembled.
Is it really the moment to cash in on a forward who has already proved he can handle the Premier League, the pressure, and the expectations? Especially when recent big-money arrivals like Isak and Wirtz needed time to adjust to life at Liverpool?
That is the dilemma facing Iraola and the recruitment team.
Gakpo’s form at this World Cup could push Liverpool one of two ways: convince them to lock him in as a central piece for at least another year, or tempt them to sell at peak value in a summer of upheaval.
For now, he is thriving in orange, reminding everyone of the player he can be when the system fits him. The only unknown is whether that future brilliance will light up Anfield – or somewhere else.
