Liverpool have confirmed the signing of PSV Eindhoven star Cody Gakpo in a deal worth €50million (£44m).
It was revealed on Boxing Day that the two clubs had come to an agreement for Gakpo's sale, before the forward put pen to paper on a five-and-a-half-year deal with the Premier League outfit, passing his medical without a hitch.
There had been interest from a number of English teams - with rivals Man United also scoping out a potential deal - but the Merseyside club emerged victorious in their chase for the 23-year-old after acting swiftly to secure the deal.
The forward has been in scintillating form for his domestic side this year and has already contributed nine goals and 12 assists from 14 Eredivisie matches this term.
The 23-year-old's signing comes amid concerns over Luis Diaz's injury - following his knee surgery - while Darwin Nunez is struggling to find his rhythm up-front.
On Boxing Day, PSV confirmed in a statement that a club-record deal had been struck between the two sides for Gakpo's move.
In a statement on Twitter, PSV wrote: 'PSV and @LFC have reached an agreement on the proposed transfer of Cody Gakpo.
'The 23-year-old attacker will leave for England imminently where he will be subjected to the necessary formalities ahead of the completion of the transfer.'
Man United had been considered favourites to sign Gakpo but missed out, after they were reduced to looking at loan deals owing to the Glazers looking to sell the club.
The 23-year-old even admitted he was hopeful that a move to Old Trafford would materialise in summer, however an approach was never made by the Red Devils.
Asked about missing out on a transfer to the Premier League in the summer, Gakpo told Dutch newspaper outlet NRC: 'That was a tough period. I learned from that.
'What comes, that comes. Suppose you want to go from RKC (Waalwijk) to PSV, but that club is not coming. Then you can panic.
'I thought about Manchester United, but when that didn't happen, I couldn't remember. And I started to doubt. Leeds United did come. Should I go there?'
'Now I wait for everything. I haven't heard from Manchester United yet. When they come, I'll think about it. I also seek the help of God in these decisions.'
Following Cristiano Ronaldo's dramatic departure from United, Gakpo had seemed to be a likely signing however the club opted against a move for the forward.
Gakpo previously had offers from Leeds and Southampton last summer but chose to stay at PSV after the Dutch club rejected the subsequent offers.
Leeds offered £25m plus add-ons for Gakpo during the summer window but it was rejected with PSV believing the add-ons were unrealistic.
Leeds boss Jesse Marsch claimed that the deal to bring Gakpo to west Yorkshire was '99.9 per cent' complete during the summer window - but the move collapsed.
The 23-year old had chosen to wait for offers from clubs contending in the Champions League and despite the pull of United's Erik Ten Hag, Liverpool fit the bill.
Sportsmail revealed on Tuesday that his Holland team-mate Virgil van Dijk, reportedly made a key phone call to convince Gakpo to join Liverpool, with the defender calling for new signings just hours before the news broke.
At the World Cup, where skilful forward Gakpo impressed with three goals, Van Dijk said the 23-year-old 'could go to the moon and back' with his career given that he 'has so much potential.'
Van Dijk had hinted at the idea that Liverpool needed fresh faces during his post-match interview against Aston Villa.
Speaking after the 3-1 victory, van Dijk said: 'Hopefully the injured players can come back soon, and hopefully we can welcome some new players at our football club.'
