Virgil van Dijk issues desperate plea for Cody Gakpo to snub Manchester City transfer

Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk has spoken out about the future of Cody Gakpo, who has emerged as a primary target for Manchester City in the final hours of the transfer window. Reports indicate that the Citizens are prepared to pay up to £75 million to secure the versatile attacker.

Van Dijk, who shares a dressing room with Gakpo at both club and international level, is eager for the forward to remain part of the project under manager Andoni Iraola. He made his stance clear during a recent press interaction:

He's a quality player and I think we should keep quality players, but let's see what the next three days bring. Obviously it's pretty clear that I want him to stay, not only because he is the quality player that he is, but also he's a friend of mine and I think he will be very important for us. Virgil van Dijk

The situation is influenced by the expected arrival of Bradley Barcola from PSG in a deal potentially worth £123 million. While this move could affect Gakpo's standing in the squad, Liverpool are cautious due to existing injury concerns involving forwards Hugo Ekitike and Alexander Isak.

The club is actively exploring replacement options should they decide to sanction Gakpo's exit. Potential targets include Brighton's Yankuba Minteh and Crystal Palace's Ismaila Sarr, though the limited time remaining makes any deal difficult to finalize.