Leeds United transfer target shines on World Cup debut as remarkable run continues

The PSV Eindhoven attacker Cody Gakpo got to a Frenkie de Jong delivery to head the Dutch in front against Senegal in the final six minutes of the Group A encounter. Davy Klaassen added a second to complete a 2-0 victory.

Gakpo has now scored or assisted a total of 33 goals this season for club and country, increasing his chances of a move to one of Europe’s Champions League elite in January or next summer.

Leeds felt they were in with a chance of landing the 23-year-old in the final days of the summer transfer window and director of football Victor Orta flew to Holland to pursue the deal. But both PSV and Gakpo have since claimed that a move to Elland Road was never imminent, with the club expecting a much higher transfer fee and the player prioritising other deals that did not come off.

The Whites ended up signing Italian teenager Willy Gnonto on deadline day but are likely to try to address their forward vacancy once again when the January window opens. Head coach Jesse Marsch spoke regularly in the summer of their active chase for a frontman and admitted recently that the need for someone to bolster the attacking options had not gone away.

Marsch and his men, who have been given training programmes to complete this week, will report back next week ahead of a mid-season training camp abroad and a handful of friendly games ahead of the Premier League’s resumption at the end of December.