Cody Gakpo’s decision to reject Leeds United in the summer appears to be paying off, with him hitting the heights from PSV Eindhoven once again.
The forward was hot property in the summer, with several Premier League sides all thought to be keen on him.
Leeds were one of them and made a late push to try and secure his signature, even going as far as to send Andrea Radrizzani to the Netherlands on a private plane to bring the player to Elland Road.
That never happened and Soccer News report on his return to form today, after a start to the season that’s seen him register ten goals and nine assists in 13 games to date.
They explain that he ‘appeared to be on his way’ to Leeds this summer and he was ‘about to board a private flight’ for the Premier League side at one point.
The club’s top administrators were less than happy with that as they could have made €40m from the sale but Gakpo wanted to stay and win a title.
Ruud van Nistelrooy’s side are now top of the Eredivisie and Gakpo is shining, enjoying playing time ahead of the World Cup and learning to adapt his game in a more central role.
He had been criticised after failing to make an impact in the big games against Monaco and Rangers and there is a feeling those games were indicators as to why the bigger clubs weren’t willing to spend this summer.
He’s also struggled to impress for the Netherlands, and it’s felt both cases are examples why the move to Leeds ‘was not right’ this year.
Fortunately for him he has a ‘big fan’ in Van Nistelrooy and that has led to ‘more stable’ performances on the pitch so far, something that could prove to be a win for the Dutch side as not only will his numbers be good, but he’ll likely also be in the Netherlands squad for Qatar.
That will provide him with a chance to showcase himself on the world stage and push his transfer fee even higher than what Leeds were willing to pay at the end of the window.
Whether he can maintain his current form remains to be seen, of course, but as far as they’re concerned in the Netherlands, rejecting Jesse Marsch and co. was a smart choice which may just pay off for everyone in the long-term.
