Liverpool Targets Bradley Barcola as Diomande Deal Stalls

Liverpool’s search for the heir to Mohamed Salah has taken a sharp turn towards Paris, with the club moving for Bradley Barcola after hitting a wall in their pursuit of Yan Diomande.

For months, Fenway Sports Group have viewed Diomande, the RB Leipzig forward lighting up the 2026 World Cup with Ivory Coast, as the marquee signing to usher in the post-Salah era at Anfield. Talks with the player’s camp have already taken place. The intent has been clear.

The reality is less cooperative.

Leipzig are digging in, unwilling to cash in on a 19-year-old they see as central to their project. On top of that, Diomande himself is leaning towards Paris Saint-Germain, a preference that has dramatically altered Liverpool’s transfer map.

So the focus has swung to the player Diomande could end up replacing in Paris.

Liverpool knock on PSG’s door

Bradley Barcola, the PSG and France winger, has moved from long-list to live target. Sky Sport Switzerland journalist Sacha Tavolieri reported on June 29 that Liverpool are now in direct contact with PSG over the 23-year-old.

“EXCL – Paris Saint-Germain has already discussed directly with several clubs, including Liverpool, for Bradley Barcola!” he posted on X at 12:53pm that day, adding that Diomande’s expected arrival in Paris “automatically opens the door” for Barcola to leave this summer.

The domino effect is obvious. PSG push for Diomande. Barcola becomes expendable. Liverpool sense the opening.

Fresh talks with Barcola’s camp

The interest is not superficial. TEAMtalk report that Liverpool have made fresh contact with Barcola’s agents this week, stepping up their efforts as the window gathers pace.

According to the outlet, club sources say Liverpool have spoken again with the winger’s representatives in recent days and received “further encouragement” that Barcola is preparing to leave the Parc des Princes before the transfer window closes.

That stance will only embolden Liverpool. Barcola has won almost everything there is to win domestically since joining PSG in 2023: three Ligue 1 titles, two Coupe de France triumphs and, crucially, two Champions League crowns. He is not leaving in search of medals. He is leaving for a bigger role.

Right now, he is on World Cup duty with France, his stock rising on the game’s biggest stage at the very moment his club future opens up.

A €120m question

There is, however, a hard edge to this story: the price.

TEAMtalk claim PSG value Barcola at around €120 million (£103.3m). That figure is not accidental. It mirrors the kind of fee the French champions would likely have to pay Leipzig to prise Diomande away.

For Liverpool, it poses a blunt question. Are they prepared to commit Diomande money to Barcola instead?

The profile fits what Liverpool need: a wide forward in his early twenties, already seasoned at elite level, comfortable under the glare of big nights and big expectations. The fee, though, would test any recruitment model, even one rebuilt for life after Salah.

Liverpool have made their move. PSG know the market. Barcola is ready to go. Now the summer’s defining decision at Anfield may come down to whether they believe the Frenchman is worth the kind of outlay once reserved for the man he could help replace.