Cody Gakpo had been strongly linked with Manchester United for several months, but the dynamic forward is now set to join rivals Liverpool.
Liverpool have reached an agreement to sign Netherlands international Cody Gakpo, his club PSV have announced.
Gakpo has been linked with several of Europe’s biggest clubs – including Manchester United and Real Madrid – after emerging as a key part of Ruud van Nistelrooy’s squad.
The forward has scored nine goals and provided 12 assists in 14 Eredivisie games this season, the third-highest tally (21) after 14 league games since 1999-00 – only Van Nistelrooy (27 in 1999-00) and former Liverpool player Luis Suarez (25 in 2009-10) bettered this result.
While United’s Erik ten Hag has been linked with Gakpo for several months, reports on Monday claimed Liverpool were close to signing the 23-year-old for an initial fee of £37m (€42m).
After impressing for the Netherlands at the World Cup in Qatar, scoring three goals, Gakpo is now on course to arrive at Anfield in the January transfer window.
A statement from the Eredivisie giants said: “PSV and Liverpool have reached an agreement for the proposed transfer of Cody Gakpo.
“The 23-year-old striker will immediately go to England, where he will undergo the necessary formalities before completing the transfer.”
The statement added that the two clubs would not disclose the fee, but general manager Marcel Brands said: “This is a record transfer for PSV”, with the club’s previous record being the sale of Hirving Lozano to Napoli for a reported €. 45 m.
Should the deal go through, Gakpo would provide competition in the front line for Jurgen Klopp’s side, who are currently without injured duo Luis Diaz and Diogo Jota.