Liverpool star Cody Gakpo remains a priority target for Tottenham Hotspur this summer, and while sources can reveal how Roberto De Zerbi has personally managed to persuade the star to make the move, the north London side may need to act fast to ensure a £70m deal does not incur a last-ditch price hike.
The Merseyside giants are looking to mould a side capable of challenging for the game’s biggest prizes under new boss Andoni Iraola, with part of his grand plan involving a remodelling of his attacking unit.
With Mohamed Salah having left on a free transfer and with Bradley Barcola very much the subject of Liverpool interest, the prospect of a double raid on PSG – and with our transfer correspondent Graeme Bailey revealing on Monday how a double agreement had been reached – could leave Gakpo having to leave Anfield.
The Dutch winger has been a relatively consistent source of goals for Liverpool since he arrived from PSV Eindhoven in January 2023, but suffered, like so many of his teammates, a sizeable drop-off in form last season as the Reds stumbled to a fifth-placed finish.
As a result, Gakpo could find himself forced out this summer if the Reds are successful in their quest to land Barcola, and with sources revealing the golden promise De Zerbi has made to Gakpo should he move to Spurs, a move to the capital is one to watch in the final days of the summer window.
Any move to Tottenham is likely to cost in the region of £70m (€82m, $90m), a fair price given some of the staggering sums floating around the Premier League this summer and reflective of the fact that the 27-year-old is contracted to Anfield until June 2030.
However, a report on Liverpool.com suggests FSG could rethink that valuation and may now look to land an inflated fee to sell Gakpo to Spurs, citing a rival deal that Chelsea are currently negotiating as a new barometer for Gakpo.
Indeed, with Portuguese winger Pedro Neto currently the subject of transfer talks over a deal to take him to Al-Hilal for £100m ($117m, $135m), that is a whopping £30m higher price than Gakpo and for a player whose stats don’t actually measure up quite as strongly over the last three seasons.
In fact, while Gakpo scored one fewer goal than Neto across all competitions in 2025/26, the Dutchman significantly outperformed the Chelsea man for goals in 2024/25; a season in which he finished as a Premier League champion.
Indeed, since joining the Reds, Gakpo has 50 goals and 23 assists from 180 appearances – a G/A every 2.465 games.
Neto, a year younger than the Liverpool man, has, by contrast, 19 goals and 19 assists from 103 games for Chelsea -a G/A every 2.7 matches.
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Gakpo transfer to Tottenham could go right to the wire
As things stand, however, a transfer to north London does not look close. Gakpo put in a good performance against Como on Sunday as Liverpool ran out 2-0 winners, with the Dutchman netting a goal and an assist, and, as things stand, looks set to start the Premier League opener at Newcastle on Sunday.
Talks, while having taken place between player and London club, have not yet begun on a club-to-club basis, meaning a deal is not as advanced as some have suggested.
However, with Barcola in their sights and with Liverpool also in talks to sign his PSG teammate, Ibrahim Mbaye, there is a strong feeling around Anfield that Gakpo could soon become surplus to requirements – and available for transfer in the closing days of the summer window.
But whether Liverpool will demand a bigger fee than the current £70m being floated about remains to be seen, though given the potential of seeing Neto leave for Saudi Arabia in a significantly higher deal, it could yet cause a rethink.
Either way, journalist David Lynch believes Liverpool could be planning for life after Gakpo by targeting two wingers this summer.
Speaking on the Anfield Index podcast, he explained: “One thing you can say is Liverpool want two, particularly if they’re going to let Gakpo go.
He added: “One of them I expect to be Barcola.”
“Who the other one is? Maybe Mbaye, but maybe not…”
On the subject of Barcola, Lynch has revealed his great optimism that a deal in the region of £125m will be struck to bring the Frenchman to Anfield this summer, suggesting it’s a case of when, not if.
The good news continues for Liverpool, too, after our major revelation on Monday that personal terms have already been agreed with both Barcola and Mbaye over long-term contracts at Anfield.