Jamie Carragher's Warning to Liverpool: Replace Salah First
Jamie Carragher has warned Liverpool against losing sight of the obvious: replace Mohamed Salah first, worry about Bradley Barcola later.
With the club preparing what would be a huge first offer for the Paris Saint-Germain winger — ESPN sources say PSG value the France international at around €150 million — the former Liverpool defender believes the recruitment priorities at Anfield are skewed.
Barcola, 21, is a left-sided forward. Salah, for nine glittering years at Anfield, terrorised defences from the right. For Carragher, that positional detail changes everything.
“He is a wonderful player, there is no doubt about that, and I would love to see Barcola at Liverpool,” Carragher told Sky Sports. “But for me he is a left winger.”
Liverpool already have options there. Cody Gakpo can operate off the left. Highly-rated 17-year-old Rio Ngumoha is pushing through. New signing Victor Muñoz also adds competition on that flank. The right, by contrast, feels bare.
“The main thing that stands out as an urgent need for Liverpool right now is replacing Salah, who was playing as a right winger,” Carragher said. “And I do not think Liverpool have any player in the squad who feels completely comfortable playing in the right wing position.”
He drilled into the balance of the squad. “The team probably have at least four numbers in the squad before Barcola joins, if he joins, who can play on the left side quite comfortably.”
So the question is not whether Barcola is good enough. It’s whether he is what Liverpool need now.
“If you asked me, do I want Barcola to arrive along with Liverpool signing a right winger too? I would be very happy because players would have to leave, and that is of course a natural thing,” Carragher said.
His concern is timing and emphasis. “At the moment, I felt that this summer should be dedicated to replacing Salah, and Barcola does not make up for Mo's departure.”
There is also the pathway of Ngumoha to consider. The teenager scored in the recent friendly win over Wrexham and is starting to create a quiet buzz around the club. Blocking his route with a mega-money arrival in his favoured role carries risk.
“Rio is a young lad, and he is really excellent, and I think he will keep developing from what he showed last season,” Carragher said. “But this is an important point: you are buying a very young player for a large sum of money in Barcola, and he is currently better than Rio Ngumoha.”
That reality does not change Liverpool’s long-term hopes for their academy product.
“You expect in the end, over the next year or two, that Rio will want to play week in, week out with Liverpool, and it is up to him to prove that,” Carragher added.
There has been talk of shifting Ngumoha across to the opposite flank to ease the congestion and open up minutes.
“So when you pay that kind of money for a young player in his position, it makes you a little uncertain,” Carragher admitted. “There is talk of Rio Ngumoha potentially playing on the right side and getting some minutes there, and as a young player it is a good thing to play on both sides, but I think his current position is the left wing.”
Carragher is not arguing against ambition. He is arguing for clarity. Sign a right winger worthy of following Salah. Then, if the numbers and sales add up, go for Barcola as well.
“If they go out and bring in a player for the right wing position, and sign Barcola, then sell two of the wide players currently in the team,” he concluded, “then I think that would be a wonderful thing.”
