Nico Williams' agent has been speaking about transfer interest in his client, which was led by Barcelona, but also supposedly included Liverpool and various others
Nico Williams is one of Spain's biggest stars
Nico Williams is one of Spain's biggest stars(Image: Europa Press 2026)
The agent of Spain forward Nico Williams has named Liverpool as one of the major European teams to have expressed interest in his client in the recent past.
Still at Athletic Club and now aged 24, Williams could have joined Barcelona during the summer, but the move broke down. Before that, there was a long-standing interest from various other big clubs.
“We all know about Barca’s interest in the summer of 2024, after the European Championship," Felix Tainta is quoted as saying, via MARCA. "Barca, Arsenal, Bayern, Liverpool, PSG... I could name them all. Everyone wanted Nico, and having a player say no to all these clubs isn’t easy.
"From there, we talked to Barca. Athletic knew because I kept them informed about the situation at all times, even though Athletic were angry with Barca for their methods. From then on, I initiated conversations.
"There came a point in the negotiations, in the situation, where Nico couldn’t be without playing time. Nico is a Formula 1 car. If I go to your house, I can’t take on your problem, and I made that clear to Barca.
"From then on, we decided that if there weren’t certain guarantees, we couldn’t risk Nico not going there to play, with a World Cup coming up."
Nico Williams has been linked with Liverpool for a while, but signed a ten-year contract at Athletic Club last year
Nico Williams has been linked with Liverpool for a while, but signed a ten-year contract at Athletic Club last year(Image: Getty Images)
Williams penned a new 10-year contract at Athletic Club in July 2025, though that does not completely rule out an exit in the future.
"Nico had the idea of being able to leave," Tainta explained. "He’s ambitious. At Athletic, you know the limitations; you know you’re not going to win a Champions League, maybe a La Liga title.
"In the end, when he kept saying, ‘Not here, not here, not here, maybe here, but the situation and what it entails doesn’t add up,’ there’s another twist where you think, ‘What if I renew?’
"I brought it up with him, I said, ‘This is what it is, do you want me to fight for it?’ And he agreed. And that’s how we renewed."
Content Image
Content Image
Liverpool is now well-stocked in wide areas, with Bradley Barcola and Victor Munoz arriving in the summer. They joined Cody Gakpo and Rio Ngumoha on Andoni Iraola's roster.
Earlier this week, Barcola scored the first senior hat-trick of his career as the Reds won 6-3 against LASK in the Champions League. He is likely to start against Brentford in the Premier League this weekend.
Liverpool.com says: Williams has had a curious career so far. He is clearly capable of playing for one of the very best teams around, and normally, players make that leap very early. There is still time, but his decade-long contract surely makes that harder, even with a $100 million (£75 million) release clause.