Cody Gakpo’s sharp start to the season has quickly altered the conversation around his Liverpool future, and in truth, it has also cast fresh light on one of the more surprising stories of the summer. Credit to James Pearce on The Athletic FC podcast, whose reporting has added important context to a situation that could have left Liverpool in a far weaker position heading into this campaign.
Gakpo looked destined to leave Anfield late in the window, with Manchester City pushing towards an £80m move. At that stage, Liverpool were open to a sale and the player, aware of the club’s stance, indicated he was prepared to make the switch. That detail matters. It frames the episode less as a player angling for the exit, and more as a footballer responding to a market reality created by his own club.
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The most important development since then has been his response. Rather than drift, Gakpo has re-engaged impressively. Under Andoni Iraola, he has found rhythm, end product and purpose, contributing goals and assists while looking far more aligned with the demands of Liverpool’s evolving attack. His goal in the Carabao Cup win over Tottenham Hotspur offered further evidence that he is thriving in a system that appears to trust him.
Gakpo Transfer Saga Reframed
The key point from the latest detail is that Liverpool were prepared to move Gakpo on as they explored another winger addition. That helps explain why there has been little reaction from supporters to revelations that he was willing to join a direct rival. As reported, “I just think from Liverpool’s perspective, they were very lucky that Brighton ended up rejecting 50 and 60 million-pound bids for Minteh because if they had accepted them, then Gakpo would have gone to Manchester City,” he said on The Athletic FC Podcast.
That is the crux of it. Liverpool were close to authorising a deal that would have strengthened a domestic competitor while weakening their own frontline. In the end, the move collapsed because a replacement was not secured, rather than due to a late strategic rethink.
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Liverpool Transfer Strategy Under Scrutiny
There is a wider point here about squad planning. If Gakpo was seen as expendable, that judgement already looks questionable. His current level has made the pursuit of alternatives appear far less convincing, particularly given the uncertainty around availability and adaptation. Pearce underlined that concern plainly: “Bearing in mind that for a start, Minteh was out injured I think until October time. That would have been a disastrous decision.”
That assessment feels difficult to dispute. Liverpool have ended up keeping a player who now looks central, not surplus. In elite recruitment, timing and conviction are everything, and this was a moment where events may have spared the club from its own call.
Man City Move Now Feels Distant
There is another revealing layer to the story. As Pearce explained, “Quite understandably, Gakpo hasn’t felt anything remotely like a backlash from the fans, despite the fact that he told Liverpool, ‘yes, I’d like to join Man City’.” He then added, “I think the context behind that was really important, because he only wanted to join Man City because he knew Liverpool were prepared to sell him and were looking to bring in another winger that would mean that they’d have to generate money in terms of bringing in cash.”
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That context is essential. For now, Liverpool benefit from having kept Gakpo, and Iraola appears to be drawing out the best in him. What looked like a likely departure now reads as a warning shot about recruitment decisions, and as a reminder that one of Liverpool’s best moves this summer may have been the one they failed to complete.
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From a Liverpool supporter’s perspective, this feels like one of those transfer stories that becomes more alarming the more you think about it. Selling Gakpo to Manchester City for £80m and replacing him with a less proven option could have been a genuinely damaging call.
The biggest comfort now is seeing how well Gakpo has responded. There has been no sulking, no drop in application, and no sense that his head has been turned. He has got on with it and performed. Supporters will always accept difficult transfer realities when a player gives everything once the window shuts, and that is exactly what he has done.
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There is also relief in the wider lesson. Liverpool have clearly avoided making a decision they might have regretted for a long time. Gakpo is settled again, productive again and, under Iraola, finally looking like a player with a defined role. That matters hugely in a forward line that is still evolving.
Most of all, this report makes it easier to understand the player’s position. If the club were open to selling him, then his willingness to listen to City becomes far less inflammatory. Fans care about commitment once the shirt is back on, and Gakpo has shown that. Right now, Liverpool look better for having kept him, and supporters can be thankful that one near-exit never became a completed transfer.
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