Liverpool Nears £120m Deal for Bradley Barcola as Salah Successor

Liverpool are on the brink of landing Bradley Barcola from Paris Saint-Germain in a blockbuster deal worth around £120million (€140m), a move that could reshape their attack and jolt the final weeks of the transfer window.

An agreement in principle is in place between the clubs, with more than £100m of that fee guaranteed. The rest is tied up in add-ons. The paperwork is not signed yet, but the framework is agreed and the deal is moving through its final stages.

On Liverpool’s side, sporting director Richard Hughes, CEO Billy Hogan and Fenway Sports Group president Mike Gordon have driven negotiations. Across the table, PSG president Nasser Al-Khelaifi has been handling talks for the European champions. The last details are being worked through on Thursday.

Nothing is done until the contracts are completed. But this one is close enough to send ripples through Liverpool’s forward line.

Salah’s successor, finally

Barcola has been Liverpool’s primary target to succeed Mohamed Salah all summer. The club had been lining up an opening bid since late July, and The Athletic revealed on July 29 that Liverpool were preparing their first formal offer.

The 23-year-old has made his stance clear in Paris. With two years left on his PSG deal, he has refused to extend his contract and pushed for a move. PSG’s response was telling: Barcola was left out of the squad entirely for their Ligue 1 opener, a 2-2 draw with Rennes on Sunday.

That omission underlined what those inside the deal already knew — his future lay elsewhere. Barcola, for his part, is described as fully committed to joining Liverpool, with key talks between the clubs on Tuesday bringing the clarity needed to accelerate the transfer.

A wide threat built for a front-foot Liverpool

Barcola operates mainly from the left, cutting in with purpose and pace, but he can also switch to the right. At PSG last season he battled with Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and Desire Doue for minutes, often coming from the bench during the latter stages of their Champions League campaign as Luis Enrique’s side retained the trophy.

Even in a stacked squad, he forced his way into the picture. Across the 2025-26 season he made 49 appearances in all competitions, scoring 13 goals and providing seven assists as PSG kept hold of the Ligue 1 title and conquered Europe again.

Since breaking into the first team in 2021-22, the Lyon academy graduate has amassed 152 appearances for PSG, returning 39 goals and 37 assists. Those are serious numbers for a player who has spent long stretches of his career fighting for starts in a superclub environment.

His form carried onto the biggest stage this summer. Barcola featured in all eight of France’s World Cup matches, scoring three times and confirming his status as one of Europe’s most dangerous young wide forwards.

This is the profile Liverpool have been chasing: direct, quick, aggressive with the ball, capable of terrifying full-backs and stretching defences in behind. He fits the vision of a more front-foot, high-tempo attacking line.

If the deal is completed as planned, Andoni Iraola will inherit another pacy winger tailor-made for the pressing, vertical style he wants to impose at Anfield.

Knock-on effects: Gakpo in the spotlight

One deal rarely moves in isolation at this level. Barcola’s arrival would crowd an already competitive forward line and could have major implications for Cody Gakpo.

The Dutchman has been repeatedly linked with Tottenham Hotspur and has also attracted interest from Manchester City this summer. A nine-figure investment in Barcola inevitably sharpens the focus on who stays, who rotates, and who becomes expendable.

Liverpool will not rush that decision, but the dynamic changes the moment Barcola walks through the door.

The lift Liverpool have been waiting for

Around Anfield, the feeling has been simple: the longer this dragged on, the more problematic it became. Liverpool needed clarity, and they needed a spark.

Now they are close to getting both.

Supporters have spent the summer waiting for a statement move in attack, something that hinted at the next era beyond Salah. This is it. A 23-year-old France international, forged in Lyon’s academy, hardened at PSG, and ready for a starring role rather than a supporting one.

If Liverpool get this over the line, they are not just signing a winger. They are making a declaration about what they want their attack to look like in the seasons to come.