Tottenham Targets Gakpo as De Zerbi Seeks Explosive Signing

Tottenham’s lavish summer is not done yet. Roberto De Zerbi wants an explosive wide attacker to crown his rebuild, and Cody Gakpo has emerged as a serious target.

Spurs have already thrown £237m at this window, reshaping midfield and defence with heavyweight signings like £100m club-record arrival Sandro Tonali and £85m Mateus Fernandes. De Zerbi, though, has been clear: the squad is only “60 per cent” complete. The missing piece, in his eyes, is a forward who can change the temperature of a game on his own.

Gakpo fits that brief. The Netherlands international is one of the more seasoned attackers in Andoni Iraola’s Liverpool squad, comfortable off the flank and capable of stepping in as a central striker. That versatility matters. Hugo Ekitike is still working back from an Achilles injury, and Liverpool cannot afford to strip away reliable cover in the final third without a plan in place.

Liverpool’s stance is firm. Gakpo has four years left on his contract and would command a substantial fee. He will not be allowed to walk out of Anfield unless a replacement is through the door.

That is where Bradley Barcola enters the story. Liverpool are expected to make a formal move for the Paris Saint-Germain winger, but prising him away from Paris will be a brutal negotiation. PSG value the 23-year-old at around £145m, a figure that instantly turns any conversation into a high-wire act. Only if a deal for Barcola progresses would a Gakpo exit start to look remotely realistic.

And even then, the knock-on effect would be stark. Should Gakpo depart and Barcola arrive, Liverpool’s remaining wing options behind them would be teenager Rio Ngumoha and new signing Victor Munoz. It would be a bold reset of the club’s attacking depth chart, and one that underlines why Liverpool are in no rush to open the door for Spurs.

De Zerbi, though, has not been shy about what he wants.

De Zerbi’s ‘bomba’ vision

The Italian has teased another major arrival, describing Spurs’ next attacking signing as a “bomba”. He insists the word carries a different nuance in Italian, but the message is obvious enough: he expects a headline act.

“The transfer market, it’s not finished for sure,” he told football.london last week. “We completed 60 per cent of our project in the transfer market. Now we have another bomba!”

He confirmed the new face will be an attacker and hinted that more than one deal could still be on the way. “I think two, maybe three,” he said when asked how many more signings he anticipated. For De Zerbi, this is about finishing a squad, not just adding names. He wants “top players” arriving in the next few days to round off the group.

Pressed on what a “bomba” looks like to him, he pointed to the calibre of the business already done. Tonali, Mateus Fernandes, Senesi, Robertson – these, he said, are his idea of explosive signings. Gakpo, or a player of similar standing, would sit comfortably in that bracket.

Spurs, though, are not limiting their search to Merseyside.

Savinho on the radar

Manchester City winger Savinho has also been explored as a possible solution out wide. The Brazilian wants to leave and join Spurs, and City are well aware of his stance. For now, though, there is no bid on the table, and that leaves the Premier League champions in a holding pattern.

Savinho signed a new contract only last summer, which instantly inflates the cost of any deal. City would also demand clarity on their own replacement before they sanction an exit. The pattern is familiar: every move at the top end of the market is chained to another.

For Tottenham, that means patience, persistence and a willingness to pay elite money for elite talent. For De Zerbi, it means waiting to see whether his “bomba” lands in north London from Liverpool, Manchester, or somewhere else entirely.

Romero interest adds another layer

All this attacking intrigue unfolds against a more delicate subplot: the future of Cristian Romero.

Atletico Madrid and Inter remain keen on the Tottenham captain, just a year after he was given the armband and signed a new deal. Inside the game, there is an expectation that Romero could move on this summer, a remarkable twist for a player so recently installed as the club’s defensive leader.

De Zerbi has already been in contact with the Argentina international and plans to sit down with him when he returns from his post-World Cup break. The Spurs head coach has hinted he will not block Romero’s path if the defender decides he wants a new challenge. It is a pragmatic stance, but one that could force Spurs back into the market at centre-back just as they chase firepower up front.

Inter’s position underlines the complexity. They have already signed John Stones to strengthen their back line, and any move for Romero is viewed as financially difficult. One scenario that could revive it is the departure of Benjamin Pavard, which would both free up space in the squad and help Inter meet Tottenham’s demands.

So Spurs stand at an intriguing crossroads. A captain who might leave. A coach demanding a “bomba” in attack. A push for Gakpo that hinges on Liverpool landing Barcola, and a parallel flirtation with Savinho that depends on City’s own dominoes falling.

The money is already on the table. The project is only “60 per cent” done. The question now is simple: who will De Zerbi be unveiling when the next explosion hits the Tottenham transfer window?