Cody Gakpo impressed by Liverpool star's performance vs Aston Villa on Instagram after club confirms deal 

Cody Gakpo was left impressed with Liverpool star Virgil van Dijk's performance against Aston Villa on Monday (26 December) after his move to Anfield was confirmed.

Gakpo was a huge presence for the Netherlands at the 2022 FIFA World Cup, scoring thrice in five games. For PSV, the 23-year-old has scored nine goals and provided 12 assists in 14 Eredivisie games this campaign.

He was heavily linked with a move to Manchester United this summer and has also been monitored by Arsenal in recent months. However, Liverpool beat their rivals to the punch and signed him for a fee of £50 million including add-ons, as per Fabrizio Romano.

Gakpo seemingly watched his to-be teammates in action against Aston Villa on Boxing Day. The Reds secured a 3-1 win at Villa Park after goals from Mohamed Salah, Van Dijk, and Stefan Bajcetic sealed the three points.

The Dutch centre-back scored, albeit through a deflection, to put his team 2-0 up in the 37th minute. Ollie Watkins' second-half goal spiced things up until Bajcetic's goal nine minutes from time knocked the stuffing out of the Villans.

After the game, Van Dijk posted a series of photos from the match and captioned it:

"Back at it!"

Gakpo commented with fire and clapping emojis on the post.

Van Dijk is Gakpo's captain at the international level. It wouldn't be audacious to suggest that the former Southampton centre-back would have put in a few good words in the striker's ears about the Reds.

His comments about the Dutch striker's potential move to Manchester United indicate that he could have had a part to play in Gakpo's decision-making process.

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Virgil van Dijk made public Manchester United recommendation to Liverpool's latest signing

Earlier this month, Van Dijk publicly recommended snubbing Manchester United to Gakpo if a bigger club came calling.

The Netherlands captain was asked about the striker's rumored move to Manchester United after their nation's last-16 win over the USA at the World Cup. He replied (h/t Evening Standard):

“Are Manchester United and Real Madrid on the same level? No disrespect, not at all. I definitely think he has that next step in him. I definitely feel like it could happen, whether that is in the winter or the summer or next year, time will tell."

It seems that Liverpool are the 'next step' in Gakpo's career, at least that's what Van Dijk would believe. The player is yet to undergo a medical and conduct media duties.