Andoni Iraola made Liverpool\u2019s priorities clear in one of his first media meetings as the club\u2019s new manager: \u201cWe definitely need to sign a winger,\u201d he said. The need remains obvious.<\/p>\n
Liverpool have already acted by bringing in 23-year-old Victor Mu\u00f1oz for $46 million, but the Spaniard is still raw and will need time to settle into a new division. That means the issue on the flanks is still unresolved, and Iraola\u2019s first season will demand more than a short-term fix. Liverpool need a proven wide player, not just another project.<\/p>\n
That is why Bradley Barcola has emerged as such an obvious fit. The Paris Saint-Germain winger is firmly on Liverpool\u2019s radar, and his profile matches exactly what the team are missing.<\/p>\n
A glance at the current squad explains the concern. Alongside Mu\u00f1oz, Liverpool have only a small number of genuine wide options. Florian Wirtz can operate from the left, while Harvey Elliott can also be used wide if he remains at the club. Even so, only Cody Gakpo, Rio Ngumoha and Federico Chiesa are really established as wingers. Chiesa looks likely to leave this summer after two underwhelming years, which would leave Gakpo and the 17-year-old Ngumoha as the main options. Ngumoha is highly rated, but he cannot be expected to carry that burden so soon. Hugo Ekitik\u00e9 may also be out until 2027 because of injury, which creates problems at centre forward too.<\/p>\n
Barcola\u2019s record with PSG makes clear why Liverpool admire him. After a quiet first season in 2022-23, he has gone on to produce 50 goal involvements over the past two campaigns under Luis Enrique. He has also impressed for France, with strong World Cup performances this summer. His pace, dribbling and finishing ability make him a difficult opponent, and he can attack from either flank by cutting inside or going to the byline. He has also contributed to back-to-back Champions League and Ligue 1 titles, while doing the defensive work required in PSG\u2019s system.<\/p>\n
The obstacle is cost and availability. PSG are reluctant to sell, and a move would likely be priced at well over $135 million. Their pursuit of Yan Diomande, who is also a Liverpool target, could alter Barcola\u2019s situation, as could interest in Maghnes Akliouche. If Barcola pushes for a departure, Liverpool may sense an opening.<\/p>\n
Iraola has generally used a 4-2-3-1 in England, and that structure could suit Barcola on the right, where he may eventually be viewed as Salah\u2019s replacement. Ekitik\u00e9, once fit, could also be used wide, while Alexander Isak remains the club\u2019s main No. 9 despite a difficult debut season.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Liverpool need width, and Bradley Barcola has become a prime target for Iraola’s side.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":18036,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1857],"tags":[195,1615,673],"class_list":["post-18037","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-liverpool-news","tag-alexander-isak","tag-andoni-iraola","tag-bradley-barcola"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.weplayfpl.com\/news-articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18037","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.weplayfpl.com\/news-articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.weplayfpl.com\/news-articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.weplayfpl.com\/news-articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.weplayfpl.com\/news-articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=18037"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.weplayfpl.com\/news-articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18037\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.weplayfpl.com\/news-articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/18036"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.weplayfpl.com\/news-articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=18037"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.weplayfpl.com\/news-articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=18037"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.weplayfpl.com\/news-articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=18037"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}