Liverpool Targets Barcola as Salah Successor
Liverpool’s search for a new right‑sided talisman has zeroed in on Paris. With Mohamed Salah gone after nine glittering years, the club’s recruitment team have pushed PSG forward Bradley Barcola to the top of their summer wishlist.
This is not a gentle reshaping of a squad. It is a full-scale attempt to replace an icon.
Salah’s departure by mutual agreement earlier in the summer left a gaping hole on the right of Liverpool’s attack and in the club’s identity. The early response was aggressive: a move for Ivory Coast prodigy Yan Diomande, only to run straight into RB Leipzig’s resolve. An offer believed to be around £85 million was knocked back, and now Leipzig look ready to cash in with Real Madrid circling at over £100m after the World Cup, despite persistent pressure from PSG.
Liverpool did not stop there. Monaco’s Maghnes Akliouche came into focus, with an initial approach lodged as the French club fielded multiple bids from PSG for the same player. At the same time, Liverpool triggered the £34.5m release clause of Spain winger Victor Munoz at Osasuna – their only completed signing so far as the Andoni Iraola era begins to take shape.
But the spotlight has shifted again, this time firmly onto Barcola.
The 23-year-old Frenchman has become the latest high‑value name in a market that has been jolted by staggering midfield fees. PSG are reported to be demanding around £145m, their stance hardened after watching Chelsea pay £117m for Morgan Rogers and Manchester City spend £116m on Elliot Anderson. Those numbers have reset the bar – and PSG have taken note.
Barcola, though, is not acting like a player content to wait his turn in Paris. He is said to be keen on a move this window, with no interest in extending a contract that runs until 2028. The frustration is easy to trace: two consecutive Champions League finals under Luis Enrique, two starts on the bench. For a forward of his ambition, that stings.
On the pitch, his case is strong. Barcola hit 13 goals and seven assists in 49 games across all competitions last season for a PSG side that swept aside domestic opposition and went deep in Europe. He then carried that form into the World Cup in North America, scoring three times in eight appearances as France laboured to a disappointing fourth-place finish.
Those numbers, combined with his age and ceiling, explain why Liverpool are pushing. They do not, however, close the gap in valuation.
At this stage, Liverpool and PSG remain some distance apart on price. The Merseyside club see a dynamic wide forward who could grow into Salah’s role over time; PSG see a prime asset in a distorted market and are pricing him accordingly.
Even so, movement is coming. Sky Sports report that Liverpool have prepared an opening offer for Barcola after holding preliminary talks with his representatives and are now readying a formal proposal to PSG.
The Salah era is over. The question now is whether Liverpool are willing to smash through a swollen market to secure Barcola as the face of their next attacking generation – or whether this pursuit becomes another near-miss in a summer defined by soaring fees and hard lines in Paris.
