Cody Gakpo's World Cup Brilliance and Liverpool's Forward Dilemma

Cody Gakpo walked off the pitch with two more World Cup goals to his name and a familiar question waiting for him.

How is it that he looks this free, this decisive, in orange – and so often more constrained in red?

“A good question. Obviously it's a little bit different,” he said when asked about his role for the Netherlands compared with Liverpool. “It's different where the coach wants me to be, the freedom that I have.” Then he stopped himself. No more offered, but enough said.

Those goals against Sweden landed at an awkward time for Liverpool. In the same week, the club committed £34.5m to Victor Munoz from Osasuna, another left-sided winger. Talks continue over a package worth £86m for RB Leipzig’s 19-year-old forward Yan Diomande, who can operate on either flank.

Two potential signings. Both comfortable in Gakpo’s patch of grass. The question almost asks itself: where does that leave him at Anfield?

From title catalyst to crossroads

Under Arne Slot in Liverpool’s 2024-25 title-winning season, Gakpo looked like a cornerstone. He scored 18 goals and added seven assists in 49 games across all competitions, numbers that justified the long-term contract he signed last summer and reflected a player who seemed settled, trusted and central to the project.

Then came last season.

Three more matches, but a sharp drop: nine goals, six assists. He was not alone in underperforming during a campaign that sagged under its own weight, yet he will know those figures are not enough for a first-choice forward at a club with Liverpool’s ambitions.

Gakpo’s preference is no secret. He wants that left channel, driving infield, shaping the game on his terms. But 2025-26 exposed a fault line. His understanding with Milos Kerkez down that side often looked half-formed, especially when it came to exploiting the Hungarian’s overlapping runs. The timing was off, the angles not quite right.

The relationship did improve as the season wore on. Kerkez now finds himself back under Andoni Iraola, his former manager at Bournemouth, and Liverpool expect the 20-year-old to accelerate his development. A more polished, more assertive Kerkez could be exactly what Gakpo needs: a left-back who drags defenders away and opens the inside lane he craves.

That, at least, is the optimistic reading.

A proven scorer, and a problem Liverpool like

Strip away the noise and the numbers still speak loudly. Fifty goals in 180 appearances. Only Dirk Kuyt has reached a half-century for Liverpool as a Dutchman before him. When fit, Gakpo has usually started. He is not a fringe figure dressing up modest returns; he is a regular who has already delivered.

Inside Liverpool, the view remains largely unchanged. They still see a proven Premier League attacker who can be used in multiple roles. With Hugo Ekitike facing the prospect of being out until 2027 after rupturing his Achilles, that versatility matters. Gakpo can play off the left, tuck into the half-space, or operate centrally if required. Iraola, who prizes intensity and flexibility in his forwards, will value that.

Yet the attack is being rebuilt around him, not for him.

Mohamed Salah has gone. At least one more attacker will arrive, with Diomande high on the list. Rio Ngumoha, the highly rated teenager, is expected to step into a more prominent role. Florian Wirtz, who occasionally played off the left last season and is doing the same for Germany at this World Cup, complicates things further.

How Iraola views Wirtz’s best position may shape Gakpo’s future more than any individual performance. If Wirtz becomes the preferred option drifting in from the left, Gakpo’s minutes there shrink. If Wirtz is used centrally or deeper, space opens up again.

This is not just a battle for a shirt. It is a battle for a role in the system.

Competition, temptation and a £60m question

Gakpo has lived this story before. When Luis Diaz arrived, competition sharpened him. The response then was to raise his level, not shrink from the challenge. Liverpool will hope the same happens now.

But the landscape has shifted. For the first time since he arrived from PSV Eindhoven in December 2022 for an initial £35m, the idea of a move away is no longer unthinkable. Several clubs are watching closely, Tottenham Hotspur among them. Any deal would likely start north of £60m, a sizeable profit for a player still in his prime.

Liverpool are not under pressure to sell. Gakpo is under contract, and his World Cup form strengthens their hand. Yet the club’s recruitment drive is aggressive, and squad places in the forward line are finite. A big offer, coupled with the arrival of Diomande and the rise of Ngumoha, could change the internal calculation.

This is what makes his performances in Qatar so intriguing for Liverpool as much as for the Netherlands.

A different Gakpo in orange

Against Sweden, he looked like the player Liverpool thought they had signed – and the one the Netherlands have consistently enjoyed. His first goal was simple but telling: arriving at the back post, in the right place, at the right time, to tap in. The second was pure Gakpo. Cut in from the left, shift, right-footed drive, no fuss.

Five goals in seven World Cup games across the 2022 and 2026 tournaments underline that this is not a hot streak; it is a pattern. His overall international record – 23 goals in 52 caps since his debut five years ago – backs it up. At this level, in this environment, he delivers.

Inside the Dutch camp, his influence stretches beyond the pitch. Crysencio Summerville describes him as “our pastor” and says Gakpo leads the prayers for the Christians in the squad. It is a detail that hints at his standing in the group: not just a star, but a figure others look towards.

Virgil van Dijk hardly needs convincing. “He is an outstanding footballer,” the Netherlands and Liverpool captain said after the 5-1 win over Sweden. “He works so hard for the team, he's disciplined and his quality stands out – his crosses, his assists, his goals.”

Those words will echo back to Merseyside.

Iraola’s puzzle piece

For now, Gakpo’s gaze is fixed on the World Cup, not on the shifting sands at Anfield. But Liverpool’s hierarchy will be watching every touch, every run, every finish. A standout tournament could harden their resolve to keep him at least another season, especially with Isak and Wirtz both having endured uneven debut campaigns in Liverpool colours. New signings often need time. Gakpo has already paid his entry fee.

That is the dilemma for Iraola and the club’s recruitment team as they reshape an attack that laboured last year. They know what Gakpo is. They are trying to imagine what he might still become – and whether that evolution happens in Liverpool red or somewhere else.

For now, he cuts in from the left in orange, scores, and answers only as much as he wants to.

The rest of the answer will come this summer.