Liverpool Pursue Ismaila Sarr After Minteh Stalled

Liverpool have made their move.

The Anfield club have lodged an opening bid for Crystal Palace winger Ismaila Sarr as they accelerate plans to reshape their attack in the final days of the window.

Liverpool pivot from Minteh to Sarr

A new wide forward sits at the top of Andoni Iraola’s wishlist after Mohamed Salah’s departure at the end of last season left a gaping hole on the right. Victor Munoz has already arrived from Osasuna, but Liverpool want another winger with immediate first-team impact.

For much of this month, that search seemed to be heading towards Brighton. Yankuba Minteh was identified as a key target, with Liverpool testing the Seagulls’ resolve twice – including an offer in the region of £60 million for the 22-year-old. Brighton stood firm. Talks dragged, then stalled over the weekend, and the trail went cold.

The pressure finally told. Liverpool walked away.

According to Fabrizio Romano, the focus has now swung decisively to Sarr, with talks already under way between Liverpool and Crystal Palace.

A £50m bid and a willing player

Liverpool have tabled an offer of around £50 million and, crucially, already have the player’s approval. Sarr is understood to be keen on the move to Merseyside and ready to step into a frontline that has lost its long-time talisman.

Whether Palace are ready to play ball at that figure is another matter.

The Eagles have already rejected two bids from Galatasaray earlier in the summer. Sarr is a central piece of their attack and, on paper, they hold all the cards: his contract runs until 2029, leaving them under no immediate financial pressure to sell.

What they do have, though, is an increasingly unsettled star.

Palace’s dilemma

Sarr wants out before the window closes next week. Last season he hit nine league goals in 28 appearances, one of them against Liverpool in Palace’s early-season win over the Reds – a performance that underlined exactly why top clubs have been circling.

He missed Palace’s opening-weekend defeat to Everton with what the club described as a minor injury and was left out of the squad entirely. After the game, new manager Pierre Sage moved to calm the situation in public, insisting he expects Sarr to stay.

“The doctor, the player and I took the decision before our training session yesterday to let him have treatment,” Sage said. “We don’t want him to leave, he is under contract with us for three years and he will be with us on Monday. That’s the most important information for me and for you.”

Behind the scenes, though, Liverpool’s bid and Sarr’s desire to leave heap pressure on Palace’s hierarchy. Hold firm and risk keeping a discontented player. Cash in and lose one of their most dangerous forwards days before the deadline.

Liverpool have made their intentions clear. Now the decision sits at Selhurst Park – dig in, or let a key asset walk into the arms of a direct Premier League rival.