Cody Gakpo Ankle Injury: Liverpool Await Scans After Serbia Force-Off
Cody Gakpo will undergo scans on Monday after being forced off with an ankle injury 17 minutes into the Netherlands’ 2-1 Nations League win in Serbia — Liverpool’s second striker scare of the international break after Alexander Isak’s early return.
Published 28 Sept 20262 min read
Cody Gakpo is set for scans on Monday after an ankle injury forced him off just 17 minutes into the Netherlands’ 2-1 UEFA Nations League win in Serbia on Sunday, leaving Liverpool waiting on a second striker bulletin of the international break.
The 27-year-old was caught by a heavy scissor-style challenge from Serbia midfielder Sasa Lukic shortly after kick-off in Belgrade — a tackle that brought the striker’s left leg briefly trapped between Lukic’s and a booking from the referee. Gakpo tried to play on, but five minutes later he went down holding his left ankle and was replaced by Ruben van Bommel.
Second blow of the break for Liverpool
The injury comes with Alexander Isak already back at the AXA Training Centre after a minor problem ended his Sweden duty early, leaving Andoni Iraola short of both of his in-form forwards ahead of a demanding run of fixtures. Reports in The Athletic suggest Gakpo will undergo scans on Monday to assess the extent of the damage, with the club’s medical team then building a picture of his availability.
Cody Gakpo in Netherlands colours (Photo via Getty Images embed)Xavi hopeful the damage is minor
Netherlands head coach Xavi moved to ease fears after the win, saying he was hopeful the problem was not too serious, and Gakpo was able to watch his side fight back to victory from the bench — Mexx Meerdink’s penalty and Mijnd Meerdink’s second-half strike overturning the opener after Gakpo’s withdrawal. Virgil van Dijk played the full 90 minutes in Belgrade and Ryan Gravenberch managed 67 before making way, while Jeremie Frimpong missed the matchday squad entirely.
What Liverpool face next
Liverpool’s first fixture when club football resumes is the visit of Manchester City on October 11 — the only side with a perfect record in the Premier League this season — followed by Brentford in the league and a European tie against LASK. Iraola will hope to have at least one of Gakpo or Isak available for the City game, with the Dutch forward’s Monday scan the next checkpoint in that conversation.
Cover photo: Cody Gakpo, April 2025, by Thomas Eisenhuth (Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0, cropped).