Cody Gakpo to Tottenham Hotspur. That sentence would have sounded absurd a few months ago. But here we are, deep in deadline week, and the transfer is genuinely on the table, except Liverpool have quietly pulled the handbrake on the whole thing.
According to Alex Crook and Ben Jacobs, Tottenham are still pushing hard to sign Gakpo, though a move to Manchester City looks unlikely at this stage. The Athletic backs that picture up further, reporting that Gakpo cannot be sold without a clear run of incoming activity at Liverpool first.
The report also notes the obvious complication, and that’s handing a rival a player of his calibre carries its own risks, regardless of the fee involved.
Separately, Ben Jacobs confirms that Liverpool sit in active talks with Paris Saint-Germain over Bradley Barcola, with French sources suggesting a deal between the two clubs is more likely than not before the September 1 deadline. That is the situation as it stands. Now here is where it gets genuinely interesting.
Why do Tottenham want Cody Gakpo?
Gakpo, who turned 27 this year, finished the 2025/26 Premier League season with 7 goals and 5 assists across 36 appearances. He added 2 more goals in 11 Champions League outings and had a stellar 2026 World Cup campaign for the Netherlands before scoring in Liverpool’s 2-2 draw against Newcastle just days ago. He is not a squad player. He is a starter, and Andoni Iraola has built around him.
Yet Tottenham want him badly. Roberto De Zerbi’s side have already crossed the £300 million mark in summer spending: Sandro Tonali, Savinho, and they’re still not done.
They see Gakpo as the final piece. Their initial valuation sat around £60 million, but Liverpool won’t accept anything below £72 million. That gap isn’t closing through goodwill; Spurs need to find the extra money because Liverpool will simply wait them out. Gakpo’s contract runs until 2030. There is no urgency on Liverpool’s end unless Barcola arrives.
And that is the crux. The entire deal lives or dies on what happens in Paris. PSG are asking £145 million for Barcola, who starred for France at the World Cup this summer.
Can Liverpool secure a deal for Bradley Barcola?
Liverpool have been in talks all summer and can’t get PSG to move on price. If they break through, the chain reaction is immediate.
Barcola comes in on the left, Gakpo drops to rotation behind him and academy forward Rio Ngumoha, and suddenly selling him for £72 million becomes a clean, profitable decision. Liverpool fund their rebuild, Spurs get their man, everyone moves on. But if PSG stand firm? The whole thing collapses.
Gakpo doesn’t move. Spurs are left with nothing after weeks of chasing. Manchester City, who are hovering in the background according to Jacobs, could yet complicate things further, though that path appears unlikely right now.
Spurs have been here before but of course under Daniel Levy, not Peter Carrington. Waiting on a deal they can’t fully control, with a deadline they can’t push back. Liverpool’s executives hold the cards here, and they won’t blink without Barcola through the door.
48 hours remain, and Cody Gakpo’s entire transfer future depends entirely on a negotiation happening in a different country, between clubs he has no say over.