Man Utd transfer target says it would be 'an honour' to play for Liverpool

FT Desk

• 13 Nov 2022 08:59 GMT
• 3 min read

Manchester United all but had a deal for Cody Gakpo signed and sealed in the summer before going for Antony instead, and now the Dutch winger has said he would just as happily play for Liverpool.

Erik ten Hag identified a need for a winger on arriving at Old Trafford in May, and the club quickly trusted their new manager that there was talent to plundered from his native Netherlands.

PSV Eindhoven's Gakpo and Antony, of Ten Hag's former club Ajax, were at the top of the list, but United paid €100 million for Antony whilst focusing the rest of the transfer budget on other areas of the squad.

READ: Man Utd still lead Gakpo race: How he can fit in the same team as Antony

Gakpo expressed his disappointment publicly at the time, but has got his head down and contributed 13 goals and 17 assists from just 24 games for PSV this season. He unsurprisingly made Louis van Gaal's Netherlands World Cup squad.

"I think at the end of this season I'll be ready to take that step," he told Dutch broadcaster NOS when asked about moving to the Premier League either in January or next summer. "I feel like I was already that way at the beginning of this season, but after this season I'm even more ready to take a step."

READ: Show pony Antony or Haaland-matching Gakpo: Did Man Utd back the wrong horse?

Gakpo open to options

That step may no longer be with United, though, with Gakpo now open to moving elsewhere.

"PSV was always my dream club," continued the Eindhoven-born winger. "I don't really have one for the rest. Real Madrid, Barcelona, Manchester United, Manchester City and Liverpool - it'd be an honour to play there, but I also have to see what kind of team I can best achieve my goals."

Whilst Gakpo's numbers this season have been extraordinary; the recent rise of Alejandro Garnacho at Old Trafford means that Man Utd can decide to focus on other areas of their squad in the winter transfer window.