Liverpool move for Gakpo is one of the great transfers which came from absolutely nowhere

Cody Gakpo is headed to Liverpool in a move which came out of absolutely nowhere on Boxing Day. These transfers did not need months of speculation first.

Andy Cole to Manchester United
It was the transfer that spawned the moment for which Kevin Keegan should be remembered, instead of ranting at Richard Keys, slumping over advertising hoardings or resigning in toilet cubicles. Andy Cole’s rampant Newcastle form had slowed to the point he had failed to score in his last nine appearances, culminating in an uninterested 90-minute plod in the FA Cup third round against Blackburn. Two days after that 1-1 draw at St James’ Park, Keegan stood on the steps to the stadium and attempted to explain why a team with Premier League title aspirations had just sold their best player to the very champions they hoped to depose.

Manchester United faced a trip to Sheffield United the day after Newcastle were held by Blackburn. Cole, by his own admission, had settled down after Newcastle training to watch that evening tie, blissfully unaware of the boardroom madness that was about to filter out into the public. The striker received a call from his agent advising him to pack an overnight bag and stand by as high-powered executives ground out the finer details. Before the proliferation of ITKs and advent of social media, the first most knew of the deal was when it dominated the Monday’s later edition of the Newcastle Evening Chronicle. Chief sports writer John Gibson later recalled his own reaction: “It was absolute shock – ‘Are you bloody kidding?””. He presumably self-censored that.

Fabinho to Liverpool
Liverpool achieved a sort of transfer omnipotence in 2018. Virgil van Dijk joined in January as Philippe Coutinho was moved on for a nine-figure sum. Alisson became the latest puzzle piece in July, by which point Naby Keita had finally arrived after a year of feverish anticipation and Xherdan Shaqiri complemented a squad with no discernible weakness. Michael Edwards even put himself in line for the Freedom of Merseyside by selling Danny Ward and Ragnar Klavan for a combined £14.5m.

Those incomings were all preceded by months of the usual pre-transfer bluster: why they were being targeted, where they would fit, how their old youth coach always knew they were moulding one of the great players of the future. In the case of Van Dijk, Keita and Alisson in particular, interest from Liverpool had been public for at least a year. Yet not two full days had passed…