Cody Gakpo’s terrific World Cup 2022 form continued against Qatar as the Netherlands striker netted his third goal in as many games to become the joint leader in the Golden Boot race.
The PSV forward has been one of the standout performers of the tournament so far, scoring in all three of his appearances for the Oranje.
His latest strike was a beauty to open the scoring against already-eliminated hosts Qatar; Gakpo burst into the box and fired a low shot into the bottom corner.
The 23-year-old’s latest strike put him joint-top of the World Cup 2022 top scorers chart, alongside France’s Kylian Mbappe and Enner Valencia of Ecuador.
It also set Louis van Gaal’s side on course to clinch a place in the knockout stages against one of the teams in Group B: England, Iran, USA or Wales.
Gakpo made history, too. He is only the fourth Dutch player to score in three consecutive World Cup games, following in the illustrious footsteps of Johan Neeskens (1974), Dennis Bergkamp (1994) and Wesley Sneijder (2010).
It’s little wonder, then, that the Dutch sensation has reportedly attracted interest from the likes of Arsenal, Manchester United and Liverpool.
He said before the Qatar game that it was “always nice to hear of such rumours”, which will only further fuel the speculation about his future.
Gakpo, who has a contract until 2026 with PSV, is valued at €45m (£39m) by Transfermarkt – although that figure will surely rise after his performances in Qatar.
