Liverpool Targets PSG's Bradley Barcola After Diomande Setback

Liverpool’s post-Mohamed Salah rebuild has taken a sharp turn towards Paris, with the club moving for Bradley Barcola after seeing their pursuit of Yan Diomande stall.

Fenway Sports Group had earmarked Diomande, the RB Leipzig forward shining for Ivory Coast at the 2026 World Cup, as a marquee successor to Salah. Talks with the 19-year-old’s camp have already taken place, underlining how serious Liverpool were about making him the face of their next attacking era.

Two obstacles have changed the picture. Leipzig do not want to sell. Diomande, for his part, prefers a move to Paris Saint-Germain.

That combination has forced Liverpool to look elsewhere – and straight at the club Diomande wants to join.

Barcola becomes the new target

Attention has now swung to PSG and France winger Bradley Barcola, a player with Champions League pedigree and the profile to step into a frontline under reconstruction at Anfield.

On June 29, Sky Sport Switzerland journalist Sacha Tavolieri reported that Liverpool are in direct contact with PSG over Barcola. He revealed that PSG have already spoken with several clubs, Liverpool among them, about a possible transfer for the 23-year-old.

Tavolieri also indicated that Diomande’s impending move effectively clears the way for Barcola’s exit, with the Frenchman expected to leave the Parc des Princes this summer.

The pressure from Liverpool has not stopped at club level. TEAMtalk now reports that Liverpool have made fresh contact with Barcola’s agents this week. Their sources say the club have spoken again with the winger’s representatives in recent days and received further encouragement that Barcola is preparing to leave PSG before the window shuts.

For Liverpool, that is exactly the kind of signal they needed.

A serial winner, but ready to move

Barcola’s readiness to go is striking given what he has already collected in Paris. Since arriving at PSG in 2023, he has stacked up major honours at a rate that would tempt most players to stay put: three Ligue 1 titles, two Coupe de France wins and two Champions League crowns.

He is also part of the France squad at the ongoing 2026 World Cup, another stage on which his value and visibility can rise.

Yet the door is open. PSG, reshaping their own attack after landing Diomande, are willing to listen – at a price.

TEAMtalk claims the French champions want €120 million (£103.3m) for Barcola. That figure mirrors what PSG themselves would need to pay Leipzig for Diomande, underlining the scale of investment Liverpool must contemplate whether they go for the Ivorian or the Frenchman.

A Salah-sized gamble

For Liverpool, this is the reality of replacing Salah. World-class output costs world-class money. The club’s recruitment team has long prided itself on precision rather than panic, but this summer demands decisiveness.

Diomande may still end up in Paris. Barcola may yet be prised away from it. What is clear is that Liverpool are already deep in the negotiations, on the phone to PSG and in the ears of Barcola’s agents.

The question now is simple: will FSG push their chips in on a €120m winger to lead the next era at Anfield?