Cody Gakpo could be worth around £50 million on the back of his World Cup heroics for the Netheralands and is now out of the reach of Premier League strugglers Southampton, Saints scout Piet Buter tells De Telegraaf.
In all competitions, the PSV Eindhoven talisman now has 16 goals for club and country this season.
His most recent, however, was certainly his most high profile. With 84 minutes on the clock, a stodgy and sluggish Dutch side looked set for an underwhelming stalemate with a gritty Senegal. Until, that is, Frenkie de Jong’s floated cross was met with bullish enthusiasm by a galloping Gakpo.
Talk about adding a couple more million onto your price tag. PSV turned down package worth around £43 million from Leeds United late in the summer window, with Southampton submitting a pre-deadline offer of their own.
But, with the likes of Manchester United, Liverpool and Arsenal taking a keen interest these days, Gakpo’s Man of the Match display on the very biggest of stages felt like a definite pin in Southampton’s already deflating balloon.
Southampton look to have missed the boat with World Cup star Cody Gakpo
“In the summer, it was about an amount of around 35 million euros (for Gakpo),” explains Buter, who works as a scout at St Mary’s.
“You can now add at least 20 million euros to that. Cody has become unfeasible for us.”
According to 90Min, Arsenal scouted Gakpo during PSV’s 2-1 win away from home at Eredivisie title-rivals Ajax recently. An explosive forward who usually thrives off the left at club level, Gakpo showcased his versatility against Senegal with a performance full of endeavour and industry on the opposite flank.
“I was close to leaving (last summer),” Gakpo told The Times a couple of months ago. “I spoke to Erik ten Hag a few times at Manchester United.
“In the end, the deal didn’t go through, which was a shame for me and my development. Manchester United is one of the biggest clubs in the world. But also (a shame) for PSV because to transfer a player to Manchester United is a good thing for the club.
“(In the final week of the window) I had to decide if I would go to Leeds or Southampton. In the end, I stayed. But it was a stressful period.”
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