Manchester United held a “secret meeting” with PSV Eindhoven over the possibility of signing forward Cody Gakpo in the summer, confirms Fabrizio Romano. The Red Devils were really interested in a move for the Dutchman before proceeding to sign Antony from Ajax.
Manchester United Held Secret Meeting Over Cody Gakpo Transfer
PSV director Brands reveals to ESPN meeting with Manchester United last summer to discuss Cody Gakpo. 🚨🔴 #MUFC
PSV wanted €50m package. “Man Utd never made an official bid”, as Brands said.
More on Gakpo, Man Utd and the relationship with his agents: https://t.co/VdXw4QJjlj pic.twitter.com/DA6HfhqwOj
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) November 6, 2022
United Failed to Follow Up After Promising Meeting With PSV Chiefs for Gakpo Signing
PSV’s director of football Marcel Brands has spoken about what happened in the summer with Gakpo, with multiple Premier League sides eager to sign him. One of those sides were Manchester United, who even held a meeting with the Dutch side to discuss the possibility of bringing him to Old Trafford.
However, Brands has added that after the meeting, United failed to come up with an official bid for the forward’s services. The total package that was discussed was around £44 million.
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Romano also states that the Red Devils are still interested in a move for Gakpo in the near future, as they consider him as one of the top young players in world football. However, the entire situation around the 23-year-old’s future has now changed as he isn’t as keen on leaving his side as he was towards the end of the summer transfer window.
Gakpo’s Future Situation Revealed
Romano has also claimed that the Dutch forward was very keen on joining the Red Devils in the summer and had even agreed to make the move, before they backed out of it following the agreement with Ajax for Antony’s transfer. He also adds that PSV are unlikely to let him leave anytime soon after witnessing his amazing start to the season.
Cody Gakpo is doing fantastic with PSV. His transfer situation has now changed: Leeds and Southampton wanted to bid again for January but that kind of move looks unlikely. 🚨🇳🇱 #transfers
Top European clubs are interested in signing Gakpo in 2023.
More: https://t.co/SOqDKwXbkT pic.twitter.com/40aXdjrKaB
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) October 27, 2022
Gakpo has scored 13 goals and provided 17 assists so far this season – making him a player with one of the highest goal involvements in Europe this season, which has led to the 23-year-old being described as the perfect “Ronaldo replacement.”