Liverpool's Transfer Focus: Yankuba Minteh

Liverpool’s transfer window has turned into a race against the clock – and Yankuba Minteh now sits right at the centre of it.

With roughly a week left to finish their business, the club still have glaring holes to plug. Curtis Jones has departed, leaving a gap in midfield. On the right flank, Mohamed Salah’s absence still hasn’t been addressed, and the attacking output from wide areas remains a problem that simply won’t fix itself.

Liverpool’s recruitment team appear to have settled on their preferred heir to that right-sided role. Minteh, currently on the books at Brighton, has become a major target. Liverpool have already tested Brighton’s resolve twice. Both bids have been knocked back.

The second offer, according to The Athletic, reached £60m. Brighton still said no. Any successful move now will demand an even higher fee, pushing Liverpool towards a price that starts to feel like an overpay for a winger whose record is mixed and who is, crucially, sidelined for three months.

Yet the story hasn’t cooled. If anything, it has intensified.

Minteh’s agent, Bakary Bojang, has added fuel to the speculation by posting an image on his Instagram story of himself preparing to board a plane. The implication is obvious: late-window talks are on the agenda, and Liverpool are in the thick of it.

The timing leaves little room for hesitation. This deal, if it happens, has to accelerate quickly. Liverpool must decide whether Minteh is truly their man on the right, not just the latest name in a frantic search.

Because this has been anything but a smooth, linear pursuit. Liverpool initially wanted Yan Diomande for that flank. When that path closed, they turned to Ibrahim Mbaye a couple of weeks ago. Now the focus has shifted again, this time to Minteh – a player with undoubted talent but no guarantee, and currently unable to play until his injury clears.

Still, this is the reality of the market they are operating in: imperfect options, inflated prices, and a ticking clock.

If Minteh is the choice, Liverpool will have to live with the risk and the cost. If he isn’t, they may have to pivot yet again – perhaps back to Mbaye, perhaps to an entirely new name, or perhaps to no one at all.

The window is closing. The right flank remains unsolved. And Liverpool are about to show exactly how much they believe in Yankuba Minteh.