Liverpool's Interest in Maghnes Akliouche Amid Salah Exit

Liverpool’s search for life after Mohamed Salah has hit familiar turbulence, and this time the name in the middle of it is Maghnes Akliouche.

The Monaco winger has been heavily linked with a move to Anfield in recent days, with reports in England suggesting Liverpool had made an initial approach. On the surface, it looked like the club’s recruitment drive on the flanks was cranking up again after the €40m arrival of Spain international Victor Munoz from Osasuna.

Scratch a little deeper, and the picture is far less clear.

Liverpool interest, PSG control

Sky Sports reporter Lyall Thomas claimed Liverpool had contacted Monaco to check on Akliouche’s availability, describing it as an “initial approach” and noting that the 22-year-old is also a target for Paris Saint-Germain. For a fanbase braced for Salah’s exit after the club signalled in March that he would be allowed to seek a new challenge this summer, that was enough to ignite excitement.

But the transfer landscape around Akliouche is being shaped elsewhere.

Fabrizio Romano moved quickly to cool talk of Liverpool hijacking the deal. Speaking on his YouTube channel, he underlined that, for now, PSG are in the driving seat.

“Right now, Paris Saint-Germain have an agreement with the player, Akliouche wants to join PSG and negotiations with Monaco are continuing,” Romano said, stressing that the clubs have not yet finalised a fee and warning that “transfers can change quickly”.

The key line for Liverpool supporters came earlier in his update: despite the noise, the Reds have not yet made a concrete move.

“There has been plenty of speculation about Liverpool hijacking the deal for Maghnes Akliouche but my information has not changed. If Liverpool make a move or enter the race, I will tell you,” Romano added.

So the situation is stark. PSG have the player’s approval and are working on the agreement with Monaco. Liverpool, at this stage, are on the fringes of the story rather than at its centre.

A name on the list, not the chosen one

Inside Anfield, Akliouche is clearly known and discussed, but he is not yet the club’s big bet.

The Athletic’s James Pearce, speaking on GiveMeSport’s Market Madness podcast, described the Frenchman as “a possibility, rather than a kind of definite” for Liverpool this summer. His wording matters. This is not a chase at full speed; it is a live option under review.

“They’ve certainly had some discussions about it,” Pearce explained. “I was told yesterday that there had been an approach earlier on in the window for the Monaco right-winger, and he is just one of a number of targets being kind of assessed at the minute before they decide exactly what they’re going to do.”

That line goes to the heart of Liverpool’s current strategy. Salah’s looming departure demands a major decision in the right-wing position, but the club are determined to scan the market rather than lunge at the first available name.

Akliouche, Pearce added, would be a “cheaper alternative” to Bradley Barcola if Liverpool failed to prise the PSG man away from Paris. Even then, “cheaper” is relative. Pearce suggested Monaco would likely demand in the region of €50–60m for their academy product.

So Liverpool know the price. They know the player. They have made exploratory contact. But they have not yet chosen to fight PSG head-on.

Familiar battle, familiar opponent

The pattern is becoming a theme of Liverpool’s summer.

RB Leipzig’s Yan Diomande emerged early as a leading target for the wide positions, only for reports to quickly establish that the player preferred a move to PSG. Now Akliouche, another young, highly rated French winger, appears to be leaning in the same direction.

For Liverpool, this is the new reality: competing with a club that can offer Paris, Ligue 1 dominance, and a central role in a project built around French talent, all while paying elite wages. To win that type of battle, they need timing, clarity and, above all, a player who genuinely wants the Premier League challenge.

Right now, Akliouche’s preference seems clear. PSG have the agreement with the player, and, as Romano put it, “Paris Saint-Germain remain firmly in control of the situation and are working to finalise the transfer as soon as possible.”

That doesn’t close the door completely. The deal between PSG and Monaco is not done, and the transfer window has a habit of turning sharply when a negotiation drags or a fee creeps too high. Liverpool know that as well as anyone.

But it does mean this: if Liverpool are to land Maghnes Akliouche, they will need to do more than make calls and “check availability”. They will need to change a player’s mind, outmanoeuvre PSG, and commit serious money to a winger who, for now, sits in the “possibility” column rather than at the top of the recruitment board.

With Salah’s exit looming and the clock ticking on the window, how long can they afford to keep their options open?