This is exactly the sort of transfer talk that stops being background noise the moment Fabrizio Romano says Tottenham Hotspur will “step up” their pursuit of Cody Gakpo. The rumor has been floating around for weeks, but now it has moved into the part of the story where the fee, the fit and the pressure all start to matter.
And make no mistake, this would not be a cheap or casual move. Liverpool could demand around £70-75m for Gakpo, which is a huge number for a player with four years left on his deal. That alone tells you why this one is interesting: Tottenham are not just shopping for another attacking option, they are considering a major financial commitment to a player who has already become a vital part of Liverpool's offense.
Why Tottenham want him
The logic is obvious enough. Tottenham are crying out for a creative 10, and that need is only made more obvious by the realities of their squad. James Maddison likely cannot play every match, Dejan Kulusevski is returning from a long injury layoff, and that leaves real questions about who is supposed to provide the spark when the team needs control, invention and a bit of authority in the final third.
Gakpo is not being talked about as a gamble on raw potential. He is a proven attacking contributor, with 7 goals and 5 assists in 2700 minutes in the 2024-2025 season for Liverpool. That is not nothing. In fact, it is exactly the kind of output that makes clubs look twice, especially when the player is already trusted in a major Premier League attack.
The fee changes everything
But this is where the conversation gets serious. A player can be good, useful and well suited to a role without automatically being worth £70-75m. That is the uncomfortable truth in most big transfers, and it applies here too. Tottenham would need to be absolutely convinced that Gakpo is the right player for their specific need, because once that kind of money is on the table, the margin for error shrinks fast.
Liverpool's position is easy to understand. They are hurting for attackers, Gakpo has been a key part of their front line, and four years on the deal gives them all the leverage they could want. If they decide to name a big price, that is not a shock. It is exactly what ambitious clubs do when they are asked to sell a player they value highly.
So this is where Tottenham are being tested. Not by the name alone, but by the cost of turning interest into action. A move for Gakpo would say plenty about their ambition. It would also say plenty about how much faith they have in one player solving a problem that, frankly, looks bigger than that.
