Cody Gakpo: PSV go public with asking price for Man Utd transfer target

Stuart Telford

• 16 Dec 2022 14:23 GMT
• 3 min read

Manchester United want to sign Cody Gakpo from PSV Eindhoven in the winter transfer window, but the Netherlands World Cup star won't come cheap.

Gakpo came close to joining United in the summer, but the deal fell through at the last minute with the Red Devils turning their attentions to Ajax winger Antony, whom they ended up paying €100 million for.

It was an expensive miss. Gakpo went into the World Cup with 13 goals and 17 assists plundered at a rate of one every 65 minutes for PSV, and three goals in three group stage games since have helped propel his value to €28.5m per Football Transfers' in-house algorithm.

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PSV now expect to achieve nearly double that amount in the transfer market.

"You have to be realistic," Director of Football Marcel Brands told the PSV supporters' club talk show Euwing Trouw. "When you talk about Cody Gakpo and the price tag, how many clubs are able to buy a player of that calibre?

"You are talking about maybe 10 or 12 clubs in Europe… we have yet to see if it all happens. He has no clause or anything and no amount has been agreed on either.

Record transfer

"It must be a record transfer for PSV anyway. Then you know in which direction it should go."

READ: Best Dutch Football Players

PSV's current record sale is Hirving Lozano, the Mexican attacking midfielder who joined Napoli for a €42m fee in August 2019, while they previously squeezed €34m out of United for Memphis Depay in 2015.

The Eredivisie outfit are expected to achieve comfortably more than those fees. Since the World Cup, Liverpool and Real Madrid have also entered the race for the 23-year-old attacker, further driving up his price.

Gakpo's arrival at Old Trafford could spell the end for Jadon Sancho. Erik ten Hag admitted recently that the English youngster wasn't in the right place physically or mentally, and Gakpo would take one of the wide positions in their attack if not asked to deputise as a No.9.