Cody Gakpo Requests Liverpool Exit After Slot's Dismissal

Cody Gakpo’s Liverpool story looks set to end not with a farewell lap of honour, but with a transfer request on the table and a new era already moving on without him.

The Netherlands international, a £37m signing in January 2022, has formally asked to leave Anfield after Arne Slot’s dismissal, according to Dutch outlet Soccernews. For a player who grew into one of Slot’s most trusted lieutenants, the timing and the reasoning cut deep.

Gakpo has delivered across his spell on Merseyside: 50 goals and 23 assists in 180 games, a steady, often underappreciated return. Fifteen of those goal contributions came in last season’s Premier League campaign, when he played a prominent role in Liverpool reclaiming the title in Slot’s first year in charge.

That high didn’t last.

This season, Liverpool’s title defence collapsed. A stuttering campaign ended with a fifth-placed finish, the kind of slide that rarely goes unpunished at Anfield. Slot paid with his job, and the club moved quickly to appoint Andoni Iraola as his successor.

Gakpo, though, has been left looking at a very different landscape.

From trusted starter to lightning rod

Across the season, the forward became a lightning rod for frustration. Sections of the fanbase regularly questioned why Slot persisted with him while teenage prodigy Rio Ngumoha watched on. Every miscontrol, every missed chance, seemed to land heavier on Gakpo’s shoulders than on anyone else’s.

Soccernews report that the 25-year-old has now “submitted a transfer request because he doesn’t not see a future at The Reds without Slot.” The wording may be clumsy; the message is not. The player who tied himself to Liverpool with a lucrative new contract is no longer convinced he belongs in the next version of this team.

Only last year, Slot’s faith in him was underlined in hard numbers. Gakpo signed a new deal worth around £250,000 a week, running to June 2030. That commitment now looks like leverage for Liverpool in the market rather than a foundation for a long-term role in Iraola’s plans.

Atletico eye Griezmann’s heir

The moment word of a top-level forward pushing for the exit leaks out, the usual suspects start circling. This time, one of them is Atletico Madrid.

According to the same Dutch report, Atletico “have ears for a collaboration” with Gakpo as they search for a replacement for Antoine Griezmann. The Frenchman is heading to MLS side Orlando City after his contract with the La Liga club expired, leaving a creative and goalscoring void in Diego Simeone’s squad.

Gakpo, valued at €60m (£52m) by Transfermarkt, would not come cheap. “A lot of payment will have to be made,” the report notes, but adds that “it’s not impossible to reach a deal.” For a club that has rebuilt its forward line several times under Simeone, the profile fits: tactically flexible, hard-working, used to the demands of a high-intensity system.

Liverpool ready to listen

Crucially, Liverpool are not expected to stand in his way. TEAMtalk report that the club are “open to his sale this summer” and will not block his request to leave.

Slot’s loyalty had been absolute. He picked Gakpo regularly when pundits and supporters were calling for change, and that faith was backed upstairs with the long-term contract. With Slot gone, the equation has changed.

Liverpool already face the monumental task of replacing club icon Mohamed Salah, who is also leaving. Losing Gakpo in the same window would strip away another established attacking option, yet sources insist the hierarchy are prepared to sanction his exit as well.

The logic is clear. A new head coach, a reset in attack, and a chance to refresh a frontline that transfer expert Fabrizio Romano flagged months ago as needing surgery.

Speaking in March, before Salah’s departure became official, Romano said: “I think it will be a busy summer for Liverpool with wingers. It’s very clear they need to reinforce their wingers. The situation with Salah and Gakpo. In general, I think Liverpool need to add something fresh in that position.”

The situation he hinted at is now unfolding in full view.

End of the line

Gakpo arrived as a statement signing and grew into a key figure in a title-winning side. Now, with Slot gone and Iraola stepping in, he sees the future somewhere else — perhaps in Madrid, perhaps elsewhere, but almost certainly away from Anfield.

Liverpool, once reluctant sellers, look ready to cash in and rebuild. The question is no longer whether Cody Gakpo fits into their next chapter.

It’s how quickly they can write it without him.