Liverpool's Gamble on Bradley Barcola: A Regret Over Salah Replacement

Liverpool’s summer gamble on life after Mohamed Salah is already under the microscope – and Stephen Warnock believes the real regret at Anfield may not be where most people are looking.

The club’s marquee move came late. On the penultimate day of the window, Liverpool finally landed Bradley Barcola in a deal worth £123m (€140m, $163m), just short of a club-record fee. The Frenchman arrives with a brutal brief: help fill the void left by Salah, a modern Liverpool great who sits third on the club’s all-time scoring list and remains adored on the Kop.

There is a twist, though. Barcola does his best work from the left.

Liverpool are already well stocked in that area, yet they never secured a like-for-like right-sided replacement for Salah. A late swing at Ismaila Sarr went nowhere. Two bids for Yankuba Minteh were knocked back. The window shut with the right flank still looking suspiciously light.

“Ultimately, yes, it could cost them,” he said.

He then cut to the core of Liverpool’s dilemma. “Was there an adequate replacement that they thought could replicate what Salah was doing? I don’t think there is an adequate replacement because what Salah did was phenomenal.”

Liverpool stuck to their valuation model. That part didn’t surprise him. What did was how and when they moved.

“I found it quite strange that they decided to go in for Ismaila Sarr so late in the transfer window, with his age and his price,” Warnock admitted. He accepted why the club cooled on the deal, pointing to Crystal Palace’s stance and Sarr’s age, but the timing jarred with the image of Liverpool as meticulous planners.

Minteh is a different case. Younger, with a higher ceiling, and very much one for the future at 22.

“Yankuba Minteh is an interesting one because you wonder whether they’d have really pushed for that move had he been fully fit,” Warnock said.

That line cut into a wider criticism. Liverpool knew this day was coming.

“The funny thing is that they have known for so long about Salah leaving, but they still haven’t found a replacement,” he continued. “I always think you should be looking two or three seasons ahead; with injuries, dips in form, you’ve always got to be thinking about who is next in line.

“I just feel like Liverpool haven’t rectified that situation, and I find it absolutely incredible to be honest. I think they possibly will go back in for Minteh in January, but there might be someone else who pops up on the radar between now and then…”

Warnock questions Semenyo snub and Diomande valuation

Barcola’s arrival finally ended a near year-long pursuit of the former PSG winger, yet he was never Liverpool’s only focus. The club had tracked Antoine Semenyo as far back as January, only to see him end up at Manchester City in a £62.5m (€73m, $84.5m) move. Earlier in the summer, Yan Diomande had also been high on their list.

To Warnock, the Semenyo decision still doesn’t sit right.

“I found it really strange at the time that they didn’t buy Semenyo,” he said.

“For the price he was at, and yes, it was inflated, but he’s a proven Premier League player, an absolute powerhouse who scores goals, reliable, durable – he just ticks every single box.

“I didn’t think he’d do what he’s done at Man City so quickly; I thought it would have taken him some time to settle in, but I think Liverpool really missed out on one there.”

The Semenyo miss feeds back into the Minteh question. Liverpool might return for the Gambian winger in January, but Warnock warned that the clock will be against them.

“I can see them going back in for Minteh, but it really depends on his form between now and January once he gets himself back fit, but it’s going to be very difficult as that is such a short window.”

On Diomande, Warnock’s tone shifted. The talent is obvious, the price less so.

“Yan Diomande was one they also wanted, but having seen him at the World Cup, I’m not entirely sure he’d be the right fit for £100 million,” he said. “I think £50-60 million would have been a realistic value for him, but everyone works on potential now and thinks about what they might be capable of in 10 years’ time.”

For now, all eyes fall on Barcola. The fee, the expectation, the positional question – it all swirls around a player walking into one of the most demanding roles in European football. Jamie Carragher’s 14-word tweet about the Frenchman went viral and sparked plenty of laughter among Liverpool supporters.

The jokes will stop quickly if the goals don’t come.