Liverpool's Urgent Pursuit of Iliman Ndiaye Amid Transfer Crunch

Liverpool are running out of summer. And the clock is starting to get loud.

Andoni Iraola has three new faces through the door, but everyone around Anfield can see the same thing: this squad is still short if Liverpool are serious about chasing down the Premier League title. Another three or four signings feels less like luxury and more like necessity as the window edges towards its final weeks.

The attack sits at the heart of it. Mohamed Salah has gone. Hugo Ekitike is sidelined. What was once Liverpool’s great strength suddenly looks thin, both in depth and in proven quality. Bradley Barcola and Ibrahim Mbaye are currently the closest to joining, but neither deal is agreed – no fee, no personal terms, nothing close enough to call imminent.

Liverpool have already been burned once this summer, watching Yan Diomande slip away. They cannot afford another repeat. So the recruitment team, led by Iraola and sporting director Richard Hughes, have started to widen the net.

And that is where one of the most unlikely names of all has emerged.

Liverpool hold ‘direct talks’ over Iliman Ndiaye

According to Caught Offside, Liverpool have held “direct talks” with the representatives of Everton forward Iliman Ndiaye about a possible move – a sentence that, in itself, feels barely believable on Merseyside.

“Sources in the industry confirm that Liverpool’s interest in Ndiaye is genuine as well, even though it’s extremely rare for the Reds to do business with their Merseyside rivals,” the outlet reported, underlining just how unusual this line of enquiry is.

The suggestion is that Liverpool’s move could be a reaction to growing concern over Barcola, or even a tactic to put pressure on PSG to lower their asking price for a player keen to leave. The motives are not confirmed, but the same report is clear on one point: Liverpool are among the clubs who have engaged in direct conversations with those close to Ndiaye, and there is “every chance” it could develop into something more concrete.

For a club that almost never crosses the park for transfers, even that level of contact is a story in itself.

A deal that would shake Merseyside

Make no mistake, Everton would only consider selling their star man across Stanley Park for a fee that forces their hand.

Caught Offside claim the Toffees have set a £75 million price tag for the Senegal international. Any negotiation with Liverpool would likely start higher. Rivalry tax, plain and simple.

Ndiaye’s appeal is obvious from a footballing standpoint. He can operate on either flank or as a No.10, carries significant Premier League experience and offers the kind of tactical flexibility Iraola craves in his forward line. He finished last season with nine goal contributions – a long way short of Salah’s historic numbers, but a solid platform and evidence of a player still climbing.

The market around him is fierce. Manchester United, Chelsea and Arsenal are all named as clubs with a stronger chance of landing him, and if Everton manager David Moyes pushes the asking price beyond £100 million, Liverpool will simply walk away. They cannot and will not sanction that level of outlay for a 26-year-old in this window.

Yet the fact Liverpool are even in the conversation for Ndiaye says plenty about the urgency of their situation and the scale of their ambition. This is not a club casually browsing; this is a club scrambling to rebuild a forward line that has lost its talisman and its fear factor.

Liverpool may ultimately pivot back towards Barcola, Mbaye or an entirely different target. They may never get close to Everton’s valuation. But if they somehow find a path to a deal for Iliman Ndiaye, it would be one of the most explosive transfers Anfield has seen in years – and a clear signal that Iraola’s Liverpool intend to rip up the script rather than quietly fade from the title picture.