Cody Gakpo: World Cup Success and Liverpool's Future
Cody Gakpo walked off the pitch with another World Cup brace to his name and a question hanging in the air.
How does his role for the Netherlands compare with the one he occupies at Liverpool?
“A good question. Obviously it's a little bit different,” he said, pausing just long enough to hint there was more on his mind. “It's different where the coach wants me to be, the freedom that I have.” Then he stopped himself.
That small hesitation said plenty.
A World Cup reminder, a Liverpool dilemma
Gakpo’s two goals against Sweden came at a delicate moment for his club future. In the same week, Liverpool committed £34.5m to bring in Victor Munoz from Osasuna, another left-sided winger. They have also pushed ahead with plans to spend a package of £86m on RB Leipzig’s 19-year-old forward Yan Diomande, who can operate on either flank.
Two potential signings, both comfortable in Gakpo’s territory.
At 27, with a long-term deal freshly inked last summer and a Premier League title under his belt, this should be the phase of his Liverpool career defined by certainty. Instead, it feels like a crossroads.
Under Arne Slot in the 2024-25 title-winning season, Gakpo delivered: 18 goals and seven assists in 49 appearances across all competitions. Those numbers underpinned his new contract and his status as a central figure in Liverpool’s attack.
Then came last season. Three more games, but a notable drop: nine goals, six assists. He was not alone in underperforming during a flat campaign at Anfield, yet he will know those figures are not enough to silence questions in a squad being aggressively reshaped.
Left side, unfinished business
Gakpo has always been clear about his preference. He wants that left channel. The space to drive inside, to pick his angles, to dictate rather than simply occupy.
In 2025-26, that left side became a work in progress. His relationship with Milos Kerkez never quite clicked early on. Kerkez’s willingness to surge beyond him, to overlap and drag markers away, begged for quicker combinations and sharper timing. Too often, the movement was there but the understanding lagged.
It did grow. As the season went on, their partnership improved, the patterns became cleaner, the runs more in sync. Now Kerkez is back under the guidance of his former Bournemouth manager, Andoni Iraola, and the expectation is clear: the Hungary left-back must accelerate his development.
If he does, that could transform the platform Gakpo works from on that flank. A full-back flying outside him, a more cohesive structure around him, and a coach who values intensity and directness. It is a scenario that can bring out his best.
Proven numbers, rising competition
The numbers still matter. Fifty goals in 180 appearances for Liverpool is not a trivial return. Among Dutch players at Anfield, only Dirk Kuyt reached the half-century before him. When fit, Gakpo has largely been first choice, a trusted part of the front line.
Inside the club, he is still viewed as a reliable Premier League attacker, someone who can adapt to different roles. That flexibility now carries extra weight. With Hugo Ekitike potentially sidelined until 2027 after rupturing his Achilles, Iraola needs forwards who can shift inside and play centrally when required. Gakpo offers exactly that.
But Liverpool’s attack is being rebuilt in real time.
Mohamed Salah has gone. At least one more forward is expected to arrive this summer, with the pursuit of Diomande gathering pace. Rio Ngumoha, the highly rated teenager, is set for a bigger role. Florian Wirtz, who spent stretches of last season operating off the left at Anfield and is doing the same for Germany at this World Cup, adds another layer to the tactical puzzle.
How Iraola decides to use Wirtz could be pivotal. If the German is viewed as a long-term option off the left, the squeeze on Gakpo tightens. If Wirtz is moved inside or given a more central creative role, the lane opens again.
Pressure or platform?
Gakpo has lived this story before. Competition sharpened him when Luis Diaz was at the club, pushing him to raise his output and intensity. There is a version of this summer where the arrival of Munoz and possibly Diomande has the same effect, turning threat into fuel.
Yet, for the first time since he arrived from PSV Eindhoven in December 2022, the idea of a move away from Anfield is no longer unthinkable. Several clubs are monitoring his situation, with Tottenham Hotspur among those keeping close watch.
Any deal would not come cheap. Liverpool would expect upwards of £60m, a substantial profit on the initial £35m they paid after the 2022 World Cup. That valuation underlines how the club still views his quality, even as they consider how best to configure their next forward line.
World Cup stage, timely statement
Against Sweden, Gakpo chose the perfect moment to restate his case.
His first goal was all about timing, arriving at the back post for a straightforward tap-in. The second was pure Gakpo: cutting in from the left, shaping the space, then drilling a right-footed shot with the kind of conviction that has defined his best work for club and country.
On a night when his Liverpool team-mate Alexander Isak failed to find the net for Sweden, Gakpo’s impact stood out. Those close to the Dutch camp talk of a tight, unified squad. Within that environment, after a draining club season, he has started this tournament with a freshness that Liverpool did not always see last year.
His World Cup record is striking: five goals in seven games across the 2022 and current tournaments. Add in 23 goals from 52 caps since his debut five years ago and the picture becomes clearer. This is not a fringe international. This is a frontline figure.
His influence stretches beyond the pitch as well. Within the Dutch squad, he plays a key role among the group of Christian players. “Cody is our pastor – he leads the prayers,” said Crysencio Summerville, a small window into the standing he holds in that dressing room.
Virgil van Dijk, captain for both Netherlands and Liverpool, hardly needs convincing. “He is an outstanding footballer,” Van Dijk said after the 5-1 win over Sweden. “He works so hard for the team, he's disciplined and his quality stands out – his crosses, his assists, his goals.”
Those are not the words of a man ready to see a team-mate eased out.
The summer question
Every strong World Cup game from Gakpo does two things at once. It strengthens Liverpool’s hand if bids arrive, and it reinforces the argument for keeping him at the heart of Iraola’s first Anfield project.
The club does not need a reminder of how hard it can be for new signings to adapt. Isak and Wirtz both endured uneven debut seasons at Liverpool, their talent obvious but their integration far from seamless. Gakpo has already cleared those hurdles. He knows the league, the club, the demands.
So Liverpool face a familiar modern dilemma. Cash in at a peak moment of value and continue the overhaul? Or double down on a forward whose numbers dipped last year but whose ceiling, as he keeps showing in orange, remains high?
As Iraola and the recruitment team redraw an attack that misfired too often last season, the Gakpo question sits right at the centre of their plans.
Not whether he is good enough. That has been answered on the biggest stage.
Whether they choose to build around him, or build beyond him.
