Liverpool Targeting Bradley Barcola as PSG Lowers Price
Liverpool are lining up a ferocious late assault for Bradley Barcola after Paris Saint-Germain dropped their price again – and Fabrizio Romano now expects the Reds to go “very strong” to get it done.
Liverpool smell opportunity as PSG soften stance
Liverpool’s plan for the final week of the window is clear: two wingers in, serious firepower added. Barcola is the priority, the one they really want. Behind him, Brighton’s Yankuba Minteh currently leads the race over Ibrahim Mbaye for the second wide addition.
On Barcola, the groundwork is already laid. Personal terms with the France international are understood to be in place, and Liverpool’s hierarchy are in daily contact with PSG over the fee and the structure of the deal.
PSG are open to selling. Barcola, like Mbaye, was left out of the squad for the Ligue 1 opener against Rennes at the weekend, a clear signal of where he sits in their plans.
The sticking point has always been the money. PSG initially planted a huge flag in the ground at around €170m (£145m). Liverpool were never going anywhere near that figure.
The landscape shifted when PSG moved aggressively in the market, bringing in Ferran Torres, Mika Godts and Maghnes Akliouche. With three new forwards through the door, multiple reports indicated Barcola’s price had dropped to around €146m (£125m).
On Tuesday morning came another twist. Insider Graeme Bailey was told PSG have now lowered their demands again, this time to roughly €140m (£119m).
That change has been welcomed at Anfield. Liverpool do not want to burden Barcola with the tag of the most expensive signing in British football history. That mark is currently held by Alexander Isak at £125m – and it would stay that way even if Liverpool matched PSG’s new valuation.
Romano: “Deal is alive” as clubs talk directly
With the fee edging down, Romano believes Liverpool are ready to pounce.
“On Bradley Barcola, guys, I told you since the beginning, it is not going to be €170m,” he said on YouTube. “With all respect for PSG, the feeling of those in the industry has always been that it is never going to be €170m, but it will still be a big amount of money.
“And this is why Liverpool and PSG are having a direct exchange day by day. So, the conversation is continuing behind the scenes.
“I told you the updates, the media updates on this story are not so traditional, like an official bid, this money, accepted, rejected, because this is a direct conversation between directors, between owners.
“So, they are talking in a direct way, Liverpool and PSG, but the deal is alive. Barcola is absolutely, absolutely a deal that Liverpool want to complete in the next few days, and my expectation is absolutely for Liverpool to go very strong for Barcola.
“Then you still need to reach an agreement for PSG to have the ‘Here We Go’. So, that remains the story and Liverpool are going very strong for Bradley Barcola. And then they want one more if Cody Gakpo goes to Tottenham or Man City.”
The message is blunt: Liverpool are in, the dialogue is constant, and the clock is ticking. If Cody Gakpo’s future pulls him towards Tottenham or Manchester City, the push for that second winger will only intensify.
Barcola is the headline act in this late-window plan. Now it comes down to whether Liverpool and PSG can turn those quiet, high-level conversations into the deal that reshapes the final week of the market.
