Cody Gakpo, PSV Eindhoven’s 23-year old attacking starlet, may well be on the move this summer.
Arsenal, Liverpool, Manchester United have all been reportedly linked with the Dutch sensation in recent months, and considering the thrilling campaign he enjoyed last season for his hometown club, it’s easy to see why he is so highly-coveted, but more importantly regarded as one of the most decorated young forwards on the continent.
The 23-year-old notched an astonishing 21 goals and 15 assists in 47 games in all competitions for the Eredivisie giants and according to the Daily Mail, he is priced between £30M and £40M, which seems an incredibly reasonable price and an attainable number for any potential suitors wishing to snap up his services for next season.
Instead of moving in January, Gakpo signed a new deal with PSV that runs through 2026, so the club won’t feel under any pressure to part with him. He recently said, “anything can happen this summer,” that he’ll assess his options, including staying in the Netherlands, and that it’s important to him to move to a club where he is going to play so that he can show well and have a shot at the Dutch World Cup team.
While times have changed regarding European Dutch supremacy, one thing has stayed the same — youth development. The Eredivisie is widely recognised for developing some of the world’s best footballers through thoughtful planning from clubs and astute coaching. In recent years, players such as Barcelona’s Memphis Depay and Frenkie de Jong have been able to propel into superstardom from their Eredivisie platform.
Gakpo of PSV Eindhoven has been touted as the next young Dutch star to break into one of Europe’s top five leagues, and this piece will delve into why he is regarded as one of Europe’s best young attackers right now.
Who is Cody Gakpo?
Born in Eindhoven and raised in the district of Stratum. His father was born in Togo and has Ghanaian ancestry, while his mother is Dutch.
In 2007, he moved to the PSV Eindhoven academy, where he then progressed through the ranks within the decorated youth setup.
During the 2016/17 campaign, he was part of the reserve team Jong PSV for the first time, but mainly featured in the U19 side.
After impressing through the ranks at his hometown club, he was immediately thrust into the reserve first XI and made his debut in the Eerste Divisie for Jong PSV in November 2016 going up against Helmond Sport.
However, he only featured one more time for the reserves but the following campaign – an incredibly productive one – where he produced seven goals and five assists in 13 league outings, he was promoted to the reserves on a permanent basis.
His second appearance in the second-tier, in January 2017, he scored a brace in a 3-2 win against De Graafschap and also registered an assist. The 2017/18 campaign in the second tier yielded seven goals in 12 games.
In the 2018–19 season, Gakpo was able to further improve his performances. This was also noticed by first team coach, Mark van Bommel. He was selected several times for the matchday squad of the first team in the first half of the season. He would initially, however, remain an unused substitute.
Instead, he made his debut in a 4–0 away win against Excelsior Maassluis in the KNVB Cup on 26 September, where he also scored a goal. He notched his first hattrick for PSV and the first in his professional career in a 5-1 demolition of Go Ahead Eagles in December 2018.
After he scored a goal and got an assist in the 5–2 home win against Almere City on 21 December, he made his debut in the Eredivisie just one day later, in a 3-1 home win against AZ coming on as a late second half sub for Steven Bergwijn.
He scored nine goals in ten league games for Jong PSV by the end of the year and was subsequently promoted to become a regular member of the first team. On 3 February 2019, he scored his first league goal in his second appearance in a 5–0 home win over Fortuna Sittard and also assisted another goal. By the end of the season he made 14 league appearances, but without being able to record another goal.
In the 2019–20 season, he made his breakthrough in the Eredivisie and recorded seven goals and as many assists in 25 league games.
On the first matchday of the 2020/21 campaign, he scored his first brace for PSV, contributing to a 3-1 win over Groningen. He scored another two goals two weeks later, in a 5-1 UEFA Europa League victory against Slovenian side NS Mura. He finished the season with 29 appearances, in which he scored 11 goals.
However, this season he has taken his game to a whole new level, remarkably increasing his goals + assists record and becoming one of the most productive forwards on the continent.
Gakpo was called up to the Netherlands squad for UEFA Euro 2020 and made his debut in the third match of the group stage against North Macedonia as a substitute in the 79th minute for Frenkie de Jong becoming the first Netherlands player to make his international debut in a European Championship since 1980.
He’s gone on to make three more appearances for the Dutch team, scoring his first goal in a comfortable 4-0 win over Montenegro in September 2021 in a 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifier.
What’s so good about Gakpo?
When watching Gakpo, the first striking aspect you may notice about him is his large size and colossal frame, as the 23-year-old stands at 6’2. With his size, Gakpo obtains a powerful stride when running, while also being able to hold off players with incredible strength and burst past them with his searing pace.
Just as he gets going towards the opposition box, he is simply unstoppable and unbeatable, and it’s not only down to the speed, trickery and strength at which he exerts himself but the unerring courage, bravery and huge confidence levels he constantly performs at.
He is intelligent on the ball regarding his decision making because of his use of scanning, which allows the young forward to survey and interpret the surrounding space beyond him, and make telling decisions in the final third.
When the opportunity arises, Gakpo holds a tendency to make a forward action towards the ball before suddenly allowing the ball to roll across his body. When space is not afforded to him, he possesses the capability in creating space for himself by making inwards and outward runs off the ball to catch opponents off-guard.
The 23-year-old is quite versatile in his play, possessing a number of unique qualities that makes him arguably PSV’s most all-rounded and decisive outlet.
He can adopt different positions and techniques to progress play and attack. Deployed as a left-winger in Roger Schmidt’s 4-2-3-1 shape, he at times, will position himself high and wide against the byline. Alternatively Gakpo will be positioned within the left half-space and former Bundesliga full-back, Phillip Max will provide width on the left-hand side.
These variations regarding his positioning are useful as it creates unpredictability as to where he will pick up the ball, which disrupts opposition marking while also creating space for his teammates.
Whether positioned in the half-space or out-wide, his tremendous link play is the key feature he expresses.
The Eindhoven-born wonderkid excels in 1-2 exchanges with teammates in his vicinity and exploits these scenarios to his advantage, constantly laying the ball off and bursting into the box. During these types of exchanges, Gakpo showcases his impressive composure as he is keen to move with speed, with or without the ball, but the young Dutch winger also has the capacity to know when to slow down play and keep the possession for his team.
While being able to trade quick passes with teammates and carve through defences with his off-ball movement, Gakpo can also create for others around him. As well as his astonishing 21 goals in all competitions, he’s also laid on 15 assists, 12 of them in the Dutch Eredivisie.
As per SofaScore, he averaged an outstanding 2.6 key passes in the Dutch top-flight last term as well as creating 11 big chances for his teammates. In just four appearances in the UEFA Europa League, he’s averaged 2.8 key passes, it may derive from considerably less minutes than that of the Eredivisie, but it still reflects just how creative and decisive he is in the final third.
With his excellent weight of pass, Gakpo holds the nous and qualities to thread an eye-of-the-needle ball and create a goalscoring opportunity. With this being said, when occupying positions out wide, Gakpo has shown crossing ability regardless of him not being a high-volume crosser, as he has only accumulated 1.6 crosses per game, which isn’t the best amongst out-an-out wingers in Europe, but it highlights his urge to create opportunities.
As stated previously, Gakpo is a hard man to stop when on the ball.
The Dutchman can beat opposition players with his astute ball manipulation and dribbling skills. When attempting to take on a player 1v1, Gakpo has a variety of ways to beat his man. When attempting a dribble, he jinks one way, inviting pressure on that side to then suddenly switch and manoeuvre to the other side – and defenders constantly get fooled by it.
He averaged 2.9 dribbles per game last season, with a tremendous success rate of 59% meaning he is more than capable of beating his marker in varying situations.
In addition, he makes good use of quick and clever touches into space with the ball to get around the marker, as well as dropping his shoulder and shifting the ball in any direction. If you need any example, check out his first strike against Feyenoord in the 2-2 draw at the start of May, taking the ball down expertly in his stride and past Lutsharel Geertruida before slotting the ball past Ofir Marciano at his near post. A mesmerizing goal.
One of Gakpo’s greatest qualities is the ability to create shooting opportunities off the dribble, and he can combine this with his superb ball-striking capability. He excels when connecting with the ball for a shot as he catches the ball sweetly and generates power when facing the goal.
Throughout last campaign, he masterfully showed that he can place the ball in any corner of the goal owing to his incredible striking ability.
His goal against Go Ahead Eagles is an excellent demonstration of his ball-striking being used in difficult situations. Mario Götze is in possession and spots Cody Gakpo running into space which could lead to a promising attacking move.
The German international dissects the opposition defence with a lovely through pass and finds Gakpo running into space. His initial touch and the pressure of the defender forces him wider than intended and disrupts his balance. Nevertheless, while unbalanced, he still manages to connect well with the ball and finish in the top right corner.
Gakpo is an aggressive and assertive runner when in possession, which is a benefit and, at other times, a detriment and something he may improve on as time passes. He looks to run at the heart of opposition defences down the centre of the pitch and in some instances, he may lose the ball when battling through a congested area.
However, it shouldn’t be put down as a weakness in his game, but an instance which is a further highlight of his courage and bravery to create openings on his own, though, it will be better at times to use his teammates.
The young winger at full speed is a lot to handle, and his sprints can create space for teammates as he attracts the opposition towards him.
A critique of his, however, is a lack of defensive work. While his work on the ball has propelled him into the spotlight, some of the big teams touting for his services will strongly expect a work ethic without possession, and his 0.6 tackles per game shows it’s an area he falls short in.
At such a young age, however, this is a weakness that could turn to a strength in time with the right coaching and application.
He’s already started off the new 2022/23 campaign in such similar vein, notching a goal and two assists in PSV’s enthralling 5-3 Johan Cruijff Shield final victory over rivals Ajax, putting in two wonderful timed crosses for Guus Til’s double before clinically latching onto the end of a goalkeeping mistake to put PSV 3-2 up.
Gakpo is a player of tremendous goal contributing qualities, and with no disrespect to PSV Eindhoven, it is incredibly baffling that the 22-year-old still remains at the club, with no top elite club ready to take a chance on him as it stands this summer, heading into the new campaign.
What does the future hold for Gakpo?
The Dutch Eredivisie is synonymous with talented players and teams that are woven into the fabric of football. At the end of a stunning 2021/22 campaign, young Gakpo can without doubt be easily tipped to be the next big thing to come out of The Netherlands — and for good reason.
The £22.5m-rated sensation is tremendously versatile, agile, unpredictable and combines skills that make him hard to mark.
His spatial awareness and instinctive ball striking off dribbling are what set the young man apart from his other counterparts within the league and it is only a matter of time until he moves on, takes off and performs on the highest stage for the highest bidder beyond this summer.
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