Man Utd beaten to the punch by Leeds for Cody Gakpo
FT Desk
- Updated: 4 Jan 2023 08:56 GMT
- 3 min read
Manchester United look set to miss out on Cody Gakpo with Leeds having already agreed terms with PSV Eindhoven's Netherlands winger.
United were negotiating for Gakpo's transfer during the summer, but the combination of PSV's reluctance to sell and Ajax demanding €100m for fellow winger Antony opened the window for Leeds.
United's bitter rivals have since agreed personal terms with Gakpo, and the sporting director who blocked his transfer away, John de Jong, has since been sacked by PSV.
This man was on 🔥 this season.
Europe, watch Cody Gakpo 👀🇳🇱#EURO2020 pic.twitter.com/qrAUJFMN9z— PSV (@PSV) June 13, 2021
Gakpo has been in stellar form this season, the 23-year-old hitting 12 goals and 10 assists in all competitions at an Erling Haaland-esque rate of one every 55 minutes. Leeds would be getting a heck of a player.
"They were so keen to bring him to the Premier League that they sent a private jet to Holland on deadline day in the hope they could fly Gakpo back to the UK to complete a medical at the 11th hour," the Mirror report.
No more stumbling block
"But PSV technical director John de Jong blocked the move - and has now been sacked after it emerged that club directors had told him that Gakpo needed to be sold to balance the books in the aftermath of a Champions League failure that cost around £60 million [€68.3m]."
Gakpo, who is currently rated at €28m by Football Transfers' in-house algorithm, could even move as soon as January. Leeds are better placed than United to spend at that point following the Red Devils' €240m outlay this summer.
Erik ten Hag still covets Gakpo - little wonder given the above numbers - and the player himself was disappointed a summer move to Old Trafford fell through.
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"A week before the end of the window I thought I would go to Manchester," he said at the time. "And then I was suddenly in a situation where I had to choose another club in a week.
That wasn't an ideal situation for me and for PSV Eindhoven. It felt a bit rushed. Ultimately, the choice fell on staying with PSV."
