PSV delete confirmation of Cody Gakpo's move to Liverpool

Cody Gakpo appears to be on the verge of a shock move to Liverpool, after PSV posted confirmation of the transfer before quickly deleting it.

Gakpo shone at the World Cup, scoring three goals for Netherlands in the group stages, leading to the belief he would be leaving PSV soon enough.

The Dutch forward had already been strongly linked with a move away from the club last summer, with Manchester United and Leeds United amongst those interested.

Despite his excellent tournament, the 23-year-old was given just a 34% chance of moving in the January transfer window, although that was still higher than most of the stars from Qatar.

United were still linked with the forward last week, having been left one short in the squad with the departure of Cristiano Ronaldo last month.

However, it appeared on Monday night that they were actually going to miss out on Erik ten Hag's number one target, losing out on his signature to Liverpool.

That was the report going around, with claims that a £37 million transfer was on the verge of happening, and then the noise got louder.

Transfer guru Fabrizio Romano claimed it was done and then a post from PSV's official Twitter account confirmed the news that he was leaving for Liverpool, before it was soon deleted.

Soon after, the club re-posted the news, with a full statement about the transfer, saying, "PSV and Liverpool FC have reached an agreement on the proposed transfer of Cody Gakpo.

"The 23-year-old attacker will leave for England imminently where he will be subjected to the necessary formalities ahead of the completion of the transfer. Both clubs are not making any announcements about the transfer fee. "But this is a record transfer for PSV," said general manager Marcel Brands.

"The PSV management completed the negotiations on Boxing Day and gave Gakpo permission to travel to England."

PSV and @LFC have reached an agreement on the proposed transfer of Cody Gakpo.

The 23-year-old attacker will leave for England imminently where he will be subjected to the necessary formalities ahead of the completion of the transfer.

— PSV (@PSV) December 26, 2022

Liverpool's need for a forward is due partially down to the fact that Luis Diaz has been ruled out for longer than first expected.

The forward picked up an injury after the Reds controversial defeat to Arsenal back in October, and was expected to be out until after the World Cup.

Klopp would have hoped that the forward, who had a huge impact when arriving in January, would have been back for the new year, but it was then reported he'd be out until March.

That meant that Klopp would have been desperate to add more firepower to his squad, as they continue to chase Arsenal at the top of the table and also need to guarantee a top four finish.

Signing Gakpo off the back of his impressive World Cup will be a huge boost to those around Anfield.

The news will come as a huge blow to United, and will certainly be something for their rivals to mock them about in the coming weeks.

Back in the summer United had been linked with Darwin Nunez, before the Uruguayan moved to Anfield instead, leaving them scrambling for a second choice forward.

Gakpo was amongst those named as potential signings for the club but no forwards came in ahead of the season starting.

However, after losing to Brentford and Brighton in their opening two games, Ten Hag's side dropped to bottom of the Premier League table.

That's when they decided to sign Casemiro and Antony, with the former Ajax man reuniting with Ten Hag at Old Trafford, just a month after they were split.

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