Liverpool Targeting Malo Gusto Amid Right-Back Crisis
Liverpool are preparing a surprise raid on a Premier League rival as Andoni Iraola moves to fix one of the most awkward gaps in his squad.
The window has crept along slowly at Anfield, but with just over a fortnight left, the pace has changed. Victor Munoz has arrived from Osasuna for £34.5 million, Ronald Araujo has checked in on loan from Barcelona, and still the feeling inside the club is that this is nowhere near enough.
Iraola wants more. And he wants it quickly.
Right flank under the microscope
Attack remains the headline act. Bradley Barcola is the name at the top of Liverpool’s wishlist, but Paris Saint-Germain’s £145m valuation sits like a brick wall in the middle of negotiations. Unless that price comes down, the Frenchman stays put.
A winger to push Rio Ngumoha and Cody Gakpo is classed as essential. Almost on the same level, though, sits the search for a new right-back – a position that has become a running problem since Trent Alexander-Arnold walked away to Real Madrid on a free last summer.
Liverpool have been patching the hole ever since. Dominik Szoboszlai spent far too many games filling in there last season as both Jeremie Frimpong and Conor Bradley battled injuries. Frimpong is now the first-choice option, but his game screams wing-back rather than orthodox full-back, which is why Liverpool are looking elsewhere.
That trail has led them straight to Stamford Bridge.
Liverpool eye Malo Gusto – but the price bites
Chelsea’s Malo Gusto has emerged as a serious name on Liverpool’s radar. According to Chelsea insider Simon Phillips, the 23-year-old has admirers across Europe: Liverpool, Tottenham, Bayern Munich and Manchester City have all been circling.
The catch is brutal. Chelsea have slapped a £75m asking price on the France international. City have already stepped back, unwilling to go that high for a right-back.
The situation is not completely locked, though. Phillips reports that Gusto has been pushing to leave Stamford Bridge for the past four months, and that stance could yet force Chelsea to soften their demands. If the number drops, the conversation changes.
Gusto’s case is strong. He played 34 times in the Premier League last season, but his place in West London has suddenly become less secure after the £47m signing of Marco Palestra from Atalanta. The Italian is expected to scrap with Reece James for minutes at right wing-back or even in midfield in Xabi Alonso’s system, leaving Gusto squeezed in a role he once looked destined to own.
A modern full-back for Iraola’s blueprint
Chelsea paid £35m to bring Gusto in from Lyon as a 19-year-old in January 2023. Since then he has grown into one of the division’s most eye-catching young defenders. He can play as a right-back in a back four or as a wing-back in more expansive systems, and he already boasts 16 caps for France.
Across all competitions, Gusto has made 134 appearances for Chelsea, with three goals and 17 assists – numbers that underline his attacking punch from deep. His game is built on pace, aggression and constant forward thrust. He wins duels, he drives into space, he stretches games.
Drop that profile into Iraola’s high-energy blueprint and the fit is obvious. At Anfield, Gusto would not only cover Frimpong; he would challenge him, sharpen him, and give Liverpool a different flavour down the right when games demand it.
Right now, the fee is the only real barrier. Liverpool will not move at £75m. Chelsea, for their part, know they hold a valuable asset but also a restless one.
If that price tag starts to slide, the equation shifts fast – and Gusto could find himself swapping West London for a very different kind of noise on Merseyside.
