Manchester City are preparing a mega offer for Cody Gakpo well above the rumoured £70million price tag set by Liverpool, Fabrizio Romano has revealed.
Previous reports have suggested Liverpool want over £60m to sell Gakpo, and potentially as much as £70m. The Reds have already landed Victor Munoz this summer but want two more winger signings before letting Gakpo leave.
They have agreed a stunning £123m deal with Paris Saint-Germain for Bradley Barcola and are now working on their next attacking addition.
Tottenham Hotspur boss Roberto De Zerbi has requested the signing of Gakpo after the captures of Savio and Omar Marmoush, but City burst into the race for the Netherlands international on Monday.
David Ornstein has now revealed that Gakpo has picked City over Spurs.
Romano, meanwhile, has stated that Enzo Maresca’s side will submit a huge £85m bid for Gakpo.
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‘Manchester City are set to bid for £85m package to sign Cody Gakpo after the agreement with player’s camp,’ Romano wrote on X.
‘#MCFC stepping up efforts to get the deal done as exclusively revealed tonight.
‘City wait for Liverpool to approve sale when they find replacement.’
Romano revealed in an earlier X post that Gakpo has agreed personal terms with City. He added that the two clubs are ‘in contact over [a] transfer fee’.
The 27-year-old frustrated many Liverpool fans last season with his disappointing performances, but he has been in impressive form of late.
Gakpo scored three times for the Netherlands at the World Cup, while he also notched a great assist in Liverpool’s 2-2 draw with Nottingham Forest on Saturday lunchtime.
Man City set to win Cody Gakpo race
Gakpo pulled off a superb turn away from his marker before picking out Alexander Isak at the back post with a fantastic low cross.
Due to all these factors, the Liverpool fanbase could end up being split on whether selling Gakpo is the right idea.
In addition to Barcola, Liverpool have held talks for Crystal Palace’s Ismaila Sarr and Yankuba Minteh of Brighton. They also held discussions with PSG for Ibrahim Mbaye, though the latter is now poised to join Aston Villa instead.
Liverpool signing Barcola alongside either Sarr or Minteh would likely open the door for City to snare Gakpo.
City view Gakpo as a replacement for Savio. Maresca also needs reinforcements in the wide attacking positions as Jeremy Doku is out for several weeks with a calf injury.
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