Cody Gakpo, who now plays as a striker for Liverpool, revealed that Manchester United was interested in him before joining Liverpool. He described a phone discussion he made with Manchester United’s manager, Erik Ten Hag, who is from the same nation as him.
Cody Gakpo almost joined Manchester United
Cody Gakpo said he talked with Manchester United about joining them in summer 2022, but he thinks going to Liverpool in winter 2023 was the best choice. Before joining Liverpool, he played for PSV Eindhoven for five years. He had discussions with Manchester United’s manager, Erik ten Hag, during his first summer with the team, but they couldn’t agree on a deal. Gakpo stayed with PSV until winter and then moved to Liverpool for £35.4m.
The 24-year-old said to Sky Sports that he was talking with United before their communication stopped.
“It was the summer before. I was in contact with the club and the manager – he’s Dutch so I spoke to him as well. At the end of the day it fell through, that’s it, and in the winter Liverpool came. It was the best decision for me,” Gakpo said.
🔴🇳🇱 Cody Gakpo: “Manchester United had talks to sign me before joining Liverpool. I also spoke to Erik ten Hag”.
“But in the end, Liverpool came and it was the best decision for me”, told @MelissaReddy_. pic.twitter.com/Oosh6DGVXo
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) March 2, 2024
Gakpo has done okay for the Reds, scoring 18 goals and helping with eight assists in 63 games overall. But it’s tough for him to get a regular place in the starting team because there are other good players like Diogo Jota and Darwin Nunez. On the other hand, Antony hasn’t done so well at Manchester United. He’s scored nine goals and helped with four assists in 71 games overall.
He also praised Jurgen Klopp.
“One of Klopp’s specialities is giving us that belief we can do it, even though we’re having a tough time with injuries, without us having some really good players that are really important for the team. We have managed through the situation, that’s because of the young players who have come in, the manager, his staff and the fans – the togetherness, this total picture, it gets us through,” he said.
