Liverpool Pursue PSG’s Bradley Barcola as Diomande Deal Stalls
Liverpool’s search for Mohamed Salah’s heir has taken a sharp turn towards Paris, with the club opening talks for Bradley Barcola after hitting a wall in their pursuit of Yan Diomande.
Fenway Sports Group had long earmarked Diomande, the RB Leipzig forward lighting up the 2026 World Cup with Ivory Coast, as the marquee replacement for the departing Salah. Liverpool sounded out his camp early, holding talks with the player’s agents and preparing for a major push once the tournament in North America settled into its later stages.
Two problems have now collided.
Leipzig do not want to sell. And the 19-year-old, for all Liverpool’s interest, prefers Paris Saint-Germain.
That combination has forced Liverpool to shift their gaze from Saxony to the French capital, where Barcola’s situation is beginning to open up.
Door opens in Paris
On June 29, Sky Sport Switzerland journalist Sacha Tavolieri reported that PSG have already spoken directly with several clubs, including Liverpool, about Barcola’s future. His message was clear: Diomande’s expected arrival at the Parc des Princes would push the France international towards the exit.
The knock-on effect is obvious. If Diomande walks through the door at PSG, Barcola is likely to be the one walking out.
Liverpool have moved quickly. TEAMtalk now report that the Anfield hierarchy have made fresh contact with Barcola’s representatives this week. Those conversations, according to their information, brought renewed encouragement that the 23-year-old is preparing to leave PSG before the transfer window closes.
For Liverpool, that matters. They are not just probing the market; they are trying to replace one of the most devastating right-sided forwards the Premier League has ever seen. Any hesitation in identifying or landing the right profile could ripple through the early months of the post-Salah era.
Proven winner, high price
Barcola, currently with the France squad at the World Cup, ticks plenty of boxes on paper.
Since arriving at PSG in 2023, he has collected trophies at a rate that would make most players’ careers. Three Ligue 1 titles. Two Coupe de France triumphs. Two Champions League wins. He has lived in a dressing room built for pressure, expectation and knockout nights.
That pedigree does not come cheap.
TEAMtalk claim PSG want around €120 million (£103.3m) for Barcola, a figure that mirrors what the French champions would likely need to pay Leipzig for Diomande. It is the going rate at the very top of the attacking market, but it is still a fee that demands certainty from any buying club.
Liverpool now find themselves weighing up the same number for a different solution.
The dynamics are clear. Diomande is the forward they targeted early, but he leans towards Paris. Barcola is the winger PSG are ready to sacrifice to make that deal and others possible. Liverpool, shut out on one front, are trying to force their way in on another.
As the World Cup plays out and negotiations sharpen across Europe, the question at Anfield is blunt: do they push their chips in on Barcola and let PSG’s reshuffle become their opportunity, or hold their nerve and risk watching another elite wide forward slip away?
