First Mohamed Salah, now Cody Gakpo! Liverpool risk losing another winger as Netherlands international states summer transfer wish

The versatile attacker’s decision to seek a fresh challenge follows an incredibly difficult competitive year for the entire playing squad. The team had to navigate immense emotional distress following the tragic passing of teammate Diogo Jota in the summer of 2025, a devastating loss that profoundly impacted the club's psychological state throughout the subsequent campaign.

On the pitch, a sharp decline in performances saw manager Arne Slot lose his connection with the home crowd, prompting owners Fenway Sports Group to terminate his contract despite a league title win in his debut year. With Bournemouth’s tactical mastermind Andoni Iraola appointed to take the reins, the Dutch winger has chosen this transition period to formalise his desire for a transfer, as reported by SoccerNews.

While interest in the versatile forward is high, it is Tottenham Hotspur who have been most heavily linked with a move. However, they are not alone in their pursuit, with Newcastle United also monitoring the situation as they look to bolster their attacking options under the new market conditions.

The transfer merry-go-round has been further complicated by developments elsewhere in Europe. Newcastle’s Anthony Gordon was a primary target for Bayern Munich, but his move to Barcelona forced the German giants to look at alternative targets. This shift in the market has placed Gakpo firmly on the radar of the Bundesliga champions, creating a competitive battle for his signature.

The structural domino effect has stretched all the way to Germany, where Bundesliga heavyweights Bayern are actively looking to hijack the English interest, potentially adding the unhappy Anfield forward to an attacking unit that already boasts former Merseyside star Luis Díaz.

This pursuit threatens to directly derail a separate, record-breaking financial operation for the player's boyhood club, PSV. Bayern have spent the week negotiating a deal for PSV’s Moroccan winger Ismael Saibari, but their sudden move for his Dutch counterpart leaves the Eredivisie side sweating over whether their former academy product will inadvertently collapse their own summer windfall.

Bayern has significantly increased their bid for Saibari, as they have put a total package of €53m on the table, including performance-related add-ons, to convince PSV to part with their prized asset. The structure of the deal is said to consist of a guaranteed fixed fee of €48m, with a further €5m potentially following in bonuses, but the Dutch club is still trying to extract the maximum possible value from the negotiations. PSV are not only focused on the total fee.

Should the transfer be completed at the current valuation, Saibari will officially become the most expensive outgoing transfer in the history of PSV. However, the Bundesliga champions' interest in securing Gakpo's services could turn the tables and derail the potential record-breaking Saibari deal.