Liverpool Seize Late Opportunity for Lamine Camara After Chelsea Collapse
Liverpool’s summer window looked closed. Then Deadline Day chaos around Lamine Camara blew it wide open again.
Chelsea thought they had their man. A deal with Monaco was agreed, the midfielder primed to become the latest piece in their long-term rebuild. But the move collapsed late, and out of the wreckage Liverpool have spotted an opening that could yet reshape Andoni Iraola’s midfield.
Quiet exits, one huge arrival – and a glaring hole
Liverpool’s business this summer was oddly lopsided. Big names walked out the door for nothing: Mohamed Salah, Andy Robertson, Ibrahima Konate. Curtis Jones headed to Inter Milan, Harvey Elliott to Valencia. Experience, continuity, and versatility – all gone in one window.
The headline signing was Bradley Barcola, prised from Paris Saint-Germain for £123m. Victor Munoz and Ronald Araujo arrived to reinforce Iraola’s options, too. On paper, it looked bold. Expensive. Ambitious.
Yet the most obvious need went unanswered again.
Since Fabinho left for Saudi Arabia in 2023, Liverpool have operated without a true specialist at the base of midfield. Names have swirled for over a year – Moises Caicedo, Martin Zubimendi and others – but every serious pursuit fizzled out. This summer followed the same pattern. The window closed with Iraola relying on Ryan Gravenberch, Alexis Mac Allister, Dominik Szoboszlai, Trey Nyoni and Wataru Endo as his senior midfield options.
Talented players, all of them. Not one a natural heir to Fabinho.
The late call that changed the picture
That’s where Camara comes in.
Speaking on talkSPORT, GIVEMESPORT senior correspondent Ben Jacobs revealed that Liverpool moved quietly but decisively as Chelsea’s deal unravelled. According to Jacobs, Anfield officials made multiple late calls to Camara’s camp and to Monaco.
“Liverpool Football Club made a call this evening, and more than one, to say to the camp of Lamine Camara to wait, to say to Monaco to wait, because Liverpool don’t want Camara now, they never explored it," Jacobs said.
He added that Liverpool’s message was clear: hold fire.
"Alexis Mac Allister is still at the club, but my understanding is that Liverpool said to Monaco wait, Liverpool said to Camara wait. Liverpool didn’t interfere in the deal relating to Chelsea.
"We are saying all Liverpool did was tell Monaco and Lamine Camara to wait; if you don’t get your move… we will be back potentially in 2027.”
No hijack. No last-minute bid. Just a calculated signal: if this move doesn’t happen now, don’t close the door on us.
Chelsea, who believed they had their man, were left furious. Liverpool, who never formally entered the race, may yet emerge as the long-term winners.
Iraola’s system crying out for a shield
Iraola’s Liverpool have already shown flashes of what they could become: aggressive, front-foot, relentless in the press. But the trade-off has been obvious in the opening weeks.
Two games, two 2-2 draws. Newcastle and Nottingham Forest both found space to exploit in midfield. The shape has been questioned, the balance scrutinised, with Jamie Carragher among those highlighting the issues in the middle of the pitch.
The pattern is familiar. Liverpool commit bodies forward, press high, squeeze the pitch. When it works, they look suffocating. When the first line is broken, they look exposed. That’s where a player like Camara changes everything.
Disciplined. Positionally sharp. Comfortable covering ground and snuffing out danger before it reaches the back line. His profile fits the gap Liverpool have been ignoring for far too long.
“One of the best midfielders in the world”
Inside Monaco, they know exactly what they have.
Earlier in the summer, Monaco boss Filipe Luis did not hold back when asked about the Senegal international.
"We are probably talking about one of the best midfielders in the world," he said.
"I don't want to talk about him too much, because I know a lot of clubs would love to have him in their squad, and he is very important to me. He has that quality on the ball, covers a lot of ground, he is truly top class! I am really happy to have him, and he is going to play a key role in the team."
Those are not the words of a coach preparing to let a player go easily. They are the words of someone who knows the market is circling and wants to keep his prize asset as long as possible.
Yet the events of Deadline Day have changed the dynamics. Chelsea’s failure to close the deal has kept the door ajar. Liverpool’s late intervention has made it clear they are ready to step through when the time is right.
A chance Liverpool can’t afford to waste?
For Iraola, a signing like Camara would do more than plug a tactical hole. It would buy him time.
A reliable defensive midfielder would stabilise the structure, ease the strain on Mac Allister and Szoboszlai, and allow Liverpool’s attacking talent to operate with greater freedom. It would also quieten the noise around the club’s recruitment strategy, which has been questioned ever since Fabinho left without a like-for-like replacement.
Liverpool have been given an unexpected second chance to fix a problem they themselves allowed to linger. The question now is simple: when the window opens again, do they finally move for the player who could anchor their next era, or does this opportunity drift away like so many before it?
