Liverpool Targets Barcola as Salah Era Ends
Liverpool’s search for a new right‑side talisman has zeroed in on Paris. With Mohamed Salah gone after nine glittering years, the name now written in bold at the top of Anfield’s summer shortlist is Bradley Barcola.
The 23-year-old French forward has emerged as the leading target as Liverpool attempt to reshape their attack in the first full window of the Andoni Iraola era. The brief is clear: find someone who can live on that right flank, carry a goal threat, and cope with the weight of replacing a club icon.
A shifting shortlist
Liverpool’s recruitment team have already taken a few swings.
- They moved early for Ivory Coast teenager Yan Diomande, only to be knocked back. An offer in the region of £85 million was rejected by RB Leipzig, who now stand to cash in for significantly more.
- Real Madrid are poised to strike after the World Cup, with the fee expected to top £100m despite firm competition from PSG.
- Liverpool also tested the water with Monaco for Maghnes Akliouche, another young wide creator heavily courted by PSG and the subject of multiple bids from the French champions.
- On top of that, they triggered the £34.5m release clause of Spain winger Victor Munoz at Osasuna – their only signing so far as Iraola’s tenure begins to take shape.
Each move underlined a clear strategy: younger, high-ceiling wide players who can grow into starring roles. Barcola fits that template, but he comes with a far more complicated price tag.
PSG hold their ground
Reports over the weekend painted a stark picture of the negotiation landscape. PSG are said to be demanding around £145m for Barcola, emboldened by the fees that have recently reshaped the market for elite young talent.
Chelsea’s £117m move for England midfielder Morgan Rogers and Manchester City’s £116m deal for Elliot Anderson have not gone unnoticed in Paris. Those numbers have set a new reference point, and PSG are acting accordingly.
Liverpool, for all their ambition, are unlikely to entertain that figure. The gap in valuation is significant, and both clubs know it.
Barcola’s stance
What complicates matters for PSG is Barcola himself.
The forward is understood to be keen on a move this window and has no interest in extending a contract that runs until 2028. His frustration has reportedly grown after starting back‑to‑back Champions League finals on the bench under Luis Enrique, watching the biggest nights from the touchline rather than the pitch.
On the field, his numbers last season were strong enough to justify elite interest. Barcola scored 13 goals and supplied seven assists in 49 appearances across all competitions for a PSG side that swept domestic honours. He then added three goals in eight games during France’s ultimately disappointing fourth‑place finish at the World Cup in North America.
Those returns, at his age, in those environments, explain why Liverpool are prepared to test PSG’s resolve.
Liverpool ready their move
Sky Sports report that Liverpool have now prepared a first offer for Barcola after holding preliminary talks with his representatives. The club are described as ready to make an official approach to PSG, moving from admiration to action.
The structure and size of that opening bid will reveal how hard Liverpool are prepared to push, and how far PSG are willing to climb down from their £145m stance. For now, there is distance between the two.
What happens next will say plenty about Liverpool’s willingness to gamble in the post-Salah era – and about PSG’s appetite to keep an unsettled, ambitious forward who sees his future away from the Parc des Princes.
