Bradley Barcola is on the cusp of joining Liverpool after his club, Paris Saint-Germain, agreed a deal for the winger. But the Reds may have to wait for the formalities to be concluded.
Bradley Barcola is edging closer to an exit from PSG
Bradley Barcola is edging closer to an exit from PSG(Image: Getty Images)
Liverpool could be forced to wait before finalizing their deal for Bradley Barcola - with the player training with Paris Saint-Germain this week.
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The Reds are said to have finally come to an agreement with the Ligue 1 giants for the left-sided wide player with the fee coming close to the $163million mark. Of that figure, $136m is to be guaranteed and that may have swung the scales in favour of the Reds who look to have landed their man.
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The formalities are still to be concluded, however, with no contract yet signed by the player. And medical tests are believed to still be in the pipeline with nothing sorted yet.
Barcola has been the main priority target for Liverpool this summer and they are now closing in, but according to journalist Fabrice Hawkins, they may have to bide their time further.
The reporter posted to his 275,000 plus followers on X that Barcola has been training as normal with PSG while he waits on his club's approval to make the switch official as certain items still need rubber stamped.
SALZBURG, AUSTRIA - 2026/08/12: Bradley Barcola (Paris Saint-Germain) celebrates after winning UEFA Super Cup 2026 game between Paris Saint-Germain and Aston Villa at Red Bull Arena. Final scores; PSG 2-1 Aston Villa. (Photo by Maciej Rogowski/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
Bradley Barcola continues to be linked with Liverpool(Image: Getty Images)
It has been a seriously protracted negotiation this summer between clubs and some pundits still maintain that Barcola is not the signing Liverpool need to be making their top priority.
Jamie Carragher, the former Anfield centre-half, claims he has been "confused" by the switch for the 23-year-old as the club has not yet replaced Mohamed Salah who left at the end of last season.
Salah moved on to Trabzonspor in Turkey's Super Lig and left a significant and gaping hole on the right-flank which Andoni Iraola has not yet filled with a replacement.
Carra said: "It looks as though Liverpool have one target at the moment and it's the one everyone's talking about. He's a left-winger for me and for me the big thing that stands out like a sore thumb right now is that we need to replace Mo Salah, a right-winger.
"I don't think Liverpool have got anybody in the squad who looks fully comfortable playing right-wing. Whereas right now I think they probably have at least four players in the squad before Barcola joins, if he joins, who can play on the left-hand side comfortably."
Former full-back Stephen Warnock also suggested two positions Liverpool should have made their most timely decision.
He added: "I think they still need a right-back to compete in that position. Conor Bradley is still not fully fit. I think at centre-half, they're probably covered now with Jacquet and Araujo, and you've got Leoni to come back in a couple of months' time. It seems like he's getting integrated back. But I think you need a specialist right-back.
“So I do think they need a few players. I think Liverpool were light in midfield last year, even with four midfielders. It looked like they were really struggling with the amount of football that they were playing."