Liverpool Transfer News: Liverpool line up winger alternatives as PSG standoff drags into July
Liverpool Transfer News: The Anfield rebuild is gathering pace. Or rather, it’s being forced to pivot. Bradley Barcola remains the name on everyone’s lips on Merseyside, but Paris Saint-Germain are digging their heels in over the 23-year-old. A £128 million price tag will do that. It is an astronomical figure, one that would eclipse the club-record £125 million spent on Alexander Isak last summer. Fenway Sports Group do not write those kinds of cheques without blinking.
According to talkSPORT’s Ben Jacobs, new head coach Andoni Iraola has concrete criteria for any incoming wide player. Pace. Raw, terrifying pace. With the Barcola deal currently stuck in a Parisian gridlock, three distinct contingency plans have been drawn up and dropped onto Iraola’s desk.
Brighton’s Yankuba Minteh leads the list of domestic options. The 21-year-old Gambian is fresh off a blistering campaign on the south coast, racking up 34 appearances, three goals, and four assists. The raw numbers only tell half the story. Minteh finished last season sitting third in the Premier League for successful take-ons, bettered only by Jérémy Doku and Mohammed Kudus.
He terrifies full-backs. Naturally, Brighton know what they have. The Seagulls are holding out for somewhere between £70 million and £80 million. That is serious money for a player with one full year of top-flight English football under his belt, which could easily stall negotiations before they even begin. (Via talkSPORT)
The Bundesliga breakout and the Lille starlet
Then there is Said El Mala. The 19-year-old left-winger is a completely different profile, coming off a stunning breakthrough year with FC Köln. Thirteen goals and five assists in 34 Bundesliga outings tend to get you noticed. Vincent Kompany wanted him at Bayern Munich.
Brentford actually thought they had him, until the entire transfer collapsed because the West London club refused to include El Mala’s brother, Malek, in the package. BILD reported the total cost of that failed deal at roughly £43 million. The player wants out. Liverpool are watching closely, and while no formal bid has landed in Germany yet, the door is wide open.
Matias Fernandez-Pardo completes the trio. The 20-year-old Belgian is currently turning heads at Lille, the same academy that nurtured Eden Hazard and Rafael Leão. Eight goals and seven assists across 41 games last term proved his pedigree. More importantly for Iraola, he can play anywhere across the front three. Versatility matters when you play this brand of football. Expect a fee around the £50 million mark if Liverpool decide to trigger this one.
Money is already moving. Jeremy Jacquet is finally a Liverpool player, arriving after a £60 million deal was struck with Rennes back in January. Victor Munoz followed shortly after, the club moving quickly to trigger his £34 million release clause before Newcastle could react.
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Everything still hinges on what happens in Paris. The mood could shift quickly if Yan Diomande seals his rumoured move to the Parc des Princes, a transfer that might finally convince PSG to let Barcola go. If not, the recruitment team have given Iraola plenty of firepower to choose from.
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