Liverpool's Gamble on Yankuba Minteh as Transfer Window Closes
Liverpool’s transfer window is running on fumes, and the club look ready to gamble big on a winger who can’t even play for the next three months.
With roughly a week left to shape their squad, Liverpool still have glaring holes. Curtis Jones has left, opening up a gap in midfield. On the right flank, the void left by Mohamed Salah remains untouched, and the wider attacking unit still feels short of goals and threat from wide areas.
Into that chaos steps Yankuba Minteh.
Liverpool push on Minteh as £60m talks heat up
Minteh has emerged as Liverpool’s preferred option to succeed Salah on the right. The Brighton winger is in demand, and Liverpool have already tested Brighton’s resolve twice.
Both times, they’ve been knocked back.
According to the Athletic, the second bid reached £60m, only for Brighton to reject it. Any successful offer now will have to go higher, pushing Liverpool towards a fee that already feels inflated for a player with a mixed track record and a significant injury lay-off ahead of him.
The story has taken another twist off the pitch. Minteh’s agent, Bakary Bojang, posted an image on his Instagram story showing himself preparing to board a plane, hinting at late-stage talks as the window ticks down. It suggests negotiations over personal terms are at least on the table, even if the clubs are still apart on price.
Time, though, is brutal. If Liverpool want Minteh, they will have to move fast and commit fully.
A chaotic search for Salah’s heir
This is not the picture of a carefully choreographed recruitment plan. Liverpool’s search for a right-sided attacker has lurched from one target to another.
Yan Diomande was the initial focus. Then came a pivot to Ibrahim Mbaye just a couple of weeks ago. Now the attention has swung again, this time to Minteh, who arrives with promise but also question marks and a three-month injury absence.
It all adds up to a window that feels scrambled rather than strategic. The club are edging towards paying a premium for a player who won’t be available until deep into the season, in a position where they are already exposed.
Yet this may simply be the reality of the market and the clock. If Minteh is the choice, he becomes the choice not because he is perfect, but because the alternatives look even less convincing.
Final days, big decisions
Liverpool now stand at a crossroads. Push beyond £60m and bet on Minteh as Salah’s long-term heir? Circle back to Mbaye? Rip it up and start again next summer?
Or do they do nothing and trust what they already have?
The answers will define not just the end of this window, but the shape of Liverpool’s attack for the season to come.
