Liverpool forward Cody Gakpo has been a revelation this season under Arne Slot, with the Dutch head coach deploying him in his favored left wing position to great effect. But he nearly ended up playing for Manchester United.

Jurgen Klopp brought Gakpo to Anfield in January 2023, swooping in for him after he scored nine goals and notched 12 assists in the Eredivisie in the first half of the 2022/23 season. Leeds United and Southampton had also been keen.

"It wasn’t until 2020 that my game really took off," Gakpo wrote for the Players' Tribune. "That’s when Roger Schmidt took over as our manager, and he lifted us to second place. We were still miles behind Ajax, but the next year, we finished just two points behind, and won the Super Cup final against them.

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"At the time, with Erik Ten Hag and the players they had, they seemed unbeatable. So, that was big. Winning the final against that Ajax team, and then for me to score in that big moment? That will always mean a lot to me.

"Around that time, I started hearing rumors of a move to England. Now, everybody who knows me, knows I am a man guided by my faith. So, one day, I had a meeting with the pastor from my church back in Holland, and he brought a friend who was a pastor somewhere else.

"This other pastor said, 'Can I tell you something?' I said of course. This was before any big clubs had come knocking on my door. And he said that God told him that I would go to Liverpool. I kind of laughed it off like, 'Yeah, nice, we will see about that.' There was already a little bit of interest from Manchester United, so I thought, 'We’ll see.'

"Then in the summer of 2022, United went for Antony. I was like, What should I do? At this point I could go to Leeds, Southampton, or I could stay at PSV. I prayed, and I asked God for guidance. But you see, I had to make sure I got his message.

"So I said, If I score only one time, I’ll go to Southampton…. If I score two times, I’ll go to Leeds…. If I score three times, I’ll stay. “The next day we played, and I scored twice. I was also involved in a third goal — and at first, it was called as an own goal. Then I was subbed out. So, two goals, right? I thought, Ah, OK, it’s Leeds then. I was at peace with my decision.

"As I was sitting on the bench, I told my friend, Jordan Teze, who now plays for Monaco, the whole story. He was like, ‘If God wants you to stay, that own goal will be awarded to you.’ It was like a coin toss, waiting to see what they decided. It could have gone either way! But after the game, they gave me the goal. I scored three, so my fate changed. I stayed at PSV."

Since signing for Liverpool, Gakpo has played 111 games scoring 37 times in that period. He has 14 goals and five assists so far this season and could face his former club, PSV, tomorrow in the Champions League.

Liverpool.com says: Gakpo has been brilliant this season and there is still more to come from him. Playing him in his best role has really worked out and things would have been very different had he moved to a dysfunctional Manchester United.