Liverpool's transfer decisions continue to come under some scrutiny, as the team struggles to gel properly in the early weeks under Andoni Iraola
Emmanuel Petit looks on before the UEFA Champions League Round of 16 First Leg match between Olympique Lyonnais and FC Barcelona
Emmanuel Petit has been discussing Liverpool's transfer decisions(Image: (Photo by Chris Brunskill/Fantasista/Getty Images))
Arsenal icon Emmanuel Petit believes that Liverpool has paid over the odds for Bradley Barcola, while claiming that the summer arrival is "overrated".
It follows a challenging start to life at Anfield for the winger, who is yet to score or assist in the first few weeks of his career with the club, despite the clamour surrounding his move from Paris Saint-Germain.
Having shown plenty of quality with the French and European champions across all competitions, there was a belief that Barcola could be the natural successor to Mohamed Salah - at least in team stature, if not in a positional sense.
While there have been glimpses of his rapid pace and trickery, the 24-year-old has yet to put it all together into a full performance, as he waits for his first goal or assist at the club to come.
The struggles against Manchester City, in a 3-0 defeat, only continued for Barcola. While the team was looking for a spark to truly ignite a positive hour or so with the game level, he was unable to pick the lock of the opposition defence and was one of the poorer displays on the day.
While that has led to some early fears about his true performance levels in the Premier League, especially when looking at some of the other big-money signings in the squad, there is still time to improve.
Despite that, former Arsenal and France star Petit believes that Liverpool has overpaid for a player who isn't quite at the right level as it stands. Speaking on TalkSport, he said: "£120 million, I would never put a price tag, you know, on the table.
"We all know that in France. We all know that he is a quality player; he could be a sometime great, but he doesn't get the regularity during the game. He was good most of the time with Paris (PSG) because of the whole team behind him."
Liverpool forward Bradley Barcola.
Liverpool forward Bradley Barcola.(Image: Alex Pantling/Getty Images)
When asked whether Liverpool paid too much for Barcola, he responded: "Definitely. I would probably spend somewhere of £60 million, £70 million maximum...
"Definitely, that's my opinion. It's becoming common now that English clubs, you know, are spending so much money on overrated players."
It's a damning claim on Barcola, who certainly hasn't lived up to expectations at Liverpool yet, though there is still time and some hope that he will improve as time goes on.
Upcoming clashes in the Premier League, Champions League, and EFL Cup could provide a stage for him to prove the doubters wrong, though it will require an uptick in performance and a clear desire to make things happen.
With both Alexander Isak and Cody Gakpo still out injured, Liverpool needs someone to step up, and Barcola will want to be the man to do just that.