The full force of a flying Cody Gakpo has already been felt by Arsenal. Just ask Arsenal’s elite French defender, William Saliba, who hasn’t been bullied much this season.
The imposing center-half has been one of Arsenal’s biggest success stories so far, coming in from the wilderness on loan to become one of the first names on the team sheet.
Few have defeated him, but if your name is Gakpo, you have triumphed.
Mikel Arteta’s men were defeated 2-0 by PSV Eindhoven in the Europa League a week ago, and it was the Dutch attacker who stole the show in the final third.
In the first half, the 23-year-old had a beautiful dinked finish ruled out for offside, while also coming close on two other occasions.
On the night, he made three key passes and completed 100% of his dribbles. It was a dominant performance that demonstrated why Arsenal should consider a January transfer.
According to recent reports, the winger is on their radar, and if he signs, he could be the club’s new Thierry Henry.
That is an extremely bold statement to make, but there are parallels. For starters, with their dangerous ability to cut inside a clear parallel, they have played both on the left and up top.
Furthermore, the Dutch superstar, who scout Jacek Kulig described as a “enormous talent,” has attempted to imitate the great French striker.
In an interview with The Times, Gakpo stated, “I’m a tall winger, but there aren’t many tall wingers, so a few years ago I started watching Henry.”
“He was more of a striker, but he was tall and liked to play off the side like me, so I watched clips of him and tried to learn from him: the way he comes in from the left and shoots with his right.”
