Pep Guardiola isn’t short of wide-men with Riyad Mahrez, Jack Grealish, Phil Foden, Bernardo Silva and Cole Palmer at his disposal, but Mahrez has been inconsistent, Grealish can’t buy a goal or assist and Palmer is inexperienced, so a new face at Manchester City wouldn’t be the worst thing.
One player they’ve been linked with is PSV Eindhoven’s Cody Gakpo. The 23-year-old has made 24 appearances in all competitions this season, scoring 13 goals with 17 assists, so he’d greatly improve the City attack. His recent comments on his future suggests he’s keen to join the Sky Blues too.
After being named in the Netherlands’ World Cup squad, Gakpo told Dutch outlet NOS (h/t talkSPORT): “I think at the end of this season I will be ready to take that step. “Real Madrid, FC Barcelona, Manchester United, Manchester City and Liverpool, it would be an honour to play there.”
Gakpo rose through the youth ranks to PSV’s first-team, making two appearances for the U17s, scoring 10 goals with five assists from 36 games for the U19s and scoring 17 goals with six assists from 25 games for the U21s. At senior level, the Dutch international has scored 55 goals with 50 assists in 159 games.
He has four years left on his deal at the Philips Stadium, so PSV are in a strong negotiating position. The Eredivisie outfit’s record sale is Hirving Lozano to Napoli for £39.4m and Gakpo’s asking price exceeds that. Time will tell if a bidding war commences.
In other news, Xavi ‘likes’ Bernardo Silva ‘the most’ but January deal is ‘difficult’
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