Liverpool Rejects Manchester City's Bid for Gakpo

Liverpool has reportedly rejected an £80 million offer from Manchester City for Dutch winger Cody Gakpo, according to journalist David Ornstein. The bid was structured as £75 million upfront with an additional £5 million in bonuses. This confirms earlier reports that the Merseyside club would retain Gakpo, despite already officially announcing the significant transfer of Bradley Barcola. Meanwhile, Manchester City is now expected to focus its efforts on acquiring Enzo Fernandez from Chelsea.

Gakpo had reportedly accepted Manchester City's offer but is said to be content remaining at Liverpool after the club explained their need for him.

Liverpool had been looking to sign another right-winger and made offers for Yankuba Minteh and Ismaila Sarr, but their respective clubs set prohibitively high price tags. Brighton valued the Gambian at £80 million, while Crystal Palace demanded £75 million for the Senegalese international. Consequently, the Anfield hierarchy opted to keep Gakpo. It remains to be seen if manager Andoni Iraola will deploy him on the right flank, as he did in the match against Nottingham Forest. It's also possible that Gakpo and Barcola could interchange positions during games if they both start. Both players generally prefer playing on the left, a preference shared by Victor Muñoz and Rio Ngumoa.

Gakpo started in both of Liverpool's opening Premier League matches, scoring in the 2-2 draw against Newcastle and providing an assist in the equally matched 2-2 home draw against Nottingham Forest on Saturday. To date, he has accumulated 50 goals and 23 assists in 180 appearances for the Merseyside club.