Former Netherlands international Wim Kieft insists Cody Gakpo is an ‘excellent’ player but Livepool’s £37 million Premier League ace should not be the Dutch number nine.
Of course, Cody Gakpo’s eye-catching performances at the Qatar World Cup speak for themselves. Starting through the middle in the Middle East, the former PSV Eindhoven captain scored three times in the tournament, earning himself that big-money move to Liverpool the following January.
But is Gakpo the long-term solution to the Netherlands’ striker issues?
Ajax legend Wim Kieft doesn’t think so, telling De Telegraaf that Ronald Koeman would be better served introducing a more physical centre-forward such as Brian Brobbey while freeing up Gakpo to do what he does best in a deeper role.
Liverpool’s Cody Gakpo impresses for Netherlands
“Cody Gakpo (is) an excellent forward who occasionally plays in midfield for Liverpool,” Kieft argues. “But he is not a top international striker.
“Behind him, you are sentenced to Wout Weghorst or someone like (Borussia Dortmund’s) Donyell Malen, who prefers to come from the wing.”
“I see Brobbey as the future striker of the Netherlands. For him, scoring provides confidence.”
Gone are the days of Robin van Persie or Klaas-Jan Huntelaar, Weghorst’s continued presence as the first-choice centre-forward a testament to the lack of alternative options at Koeman’s disposal.
The former Manchester United loanee scored a rare but brilliant goal as the Netherlands defeated the Republic of Ireland over the weekend, Gakpo catching the eye in the left-wing position he made his own at PSV.
‘The future of the Dutch team’
“I’ve said it before, those three have a lot of potential,” ex-Real Madrid, Ajax and Tottenham Hotspur playmaker Rafael van der Vaart tells De Telegraaf, singling out the Liverpool ace as well as RB Leipzig’s Xavi Simons and his PSV replacement Noa Lang.
“Maybe the European Championships in Germany (in 2024) will come a little too early for them to really peak. But, in the long term, things look really good for these guys. As far as I’m concerned, they really form the future of the Dutch team.”
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