Liverpool's Pursuit of Barcola: A Shift in Strategy
Liverpool step back into Premier League business this weekend with the sense that something is shifting behind the scenes as much as on the pitch.
Not only do Andoni Iraola’s side host Nottingham Forest in their first home game of the season, still hunting their first league win, they do so with a £120million agreement in place for Bradley Barcola.
The deal with Paris Saint-Germain is not signed off yet, but the direction of travel is clear.
Barcola left out as Liverpool move nears
Barcola remains, officially, a PSG player. On paper, nothing has changed. In reality, everything has.
He has not played a single minute this season. The France international sat on the bench for PSG’s UEFA Super Cup win over Aston Villa, then disappeared entirely from Luis Enrique’s domestic squads against Lens and Rennes.
On Friday night, with his Liverpool move edging closer, PSG again left him out of the matchday group for their Ligue 1 trip to Lille. It felt less like rotation and more like preparation.
Once the final details are signed off, Barcola is expected to become Liverpool’s second-most expensive signing of all time, behind only Alexander Isak’s £125m move. That is the financial bracket the club are operating in for a 21-year-old winger they believe can change games at Anfield.
The numbers back up the belief. Last season, Barcola scored 13 goals and supplied seven assists in 49 appearances across all competitions. He did it not as a flat-track bully, but as part of a PSG side that lifted back-to-back Champions League titles, forcing his way into a star-studded attack.
He has had to scrap for minutes against Kvicha Kvaratskhelia and Desire Doue, yet still carved out a role as a decisive wide threat. Now, with Iraola demanding aggression and verticality, Liverpool see that profile as a perfect fit.
Iraola’s “power football” and Wirtz at No. 10
If Barcola is the next piece of the puzzle, Florian Wirtz is already central to Iraola’s plan.
Under Arne Slot, Wirtz drifted. He operated as an attacking midfielder, sometimes off the left, never quite nailed down to one role in his debut Premier League season. Talented, yes. Defined, no.
Iraola has wasted no time changing that. During pre-season, the Spaniard made it clear he views the German as his No. 10, the creative hub around which his “power football” will revolve.
Speaking to Sky Germany, the 23-year-old outlined exactly what that means. “He (Iraola) just wants to play power football going forward. Lots of pressing. The tasks you have are actually relatively clear,” Wirtz explained.
The message is simple: run, press, create. Do it with conviction.
Wirtz knows the idea only works if the whole side moves as one. “Of course, we now have to work on making it work as a team. So not only that everyone does their job well, but that it also harmonizes together,” he said. The early signs have impressed him. “He definitely makes a very good impression on me. I think that he reaches a lot of players with it and that we as a team also understand what he wants from us.”
The 2-2 draw at Newcastle showed both promise and flaws: energy, goals, but defensive gaps and loose control. Iraola’s blueprint is clear, the execution less so. That is the next step.
For Wirtz, belief is already building. “I think it's definitely a good start, that the players believe in it, and I hope that it will be successful.”
Now comes the real test. A restless Anfield, a Forest side happy to spoil, a new tactical era bedding in – and, looming over it all, the imminent arrival of a £120m winger built for chaos.
If Iraola really wants “power football”, Liverpool are about to find out how much power they can handle.
