On August 27th local time, The Times revealed that Liverpool's interest in Barcola began in 2022 and they continued to monitor him after PSG signed him. Barcola will primarily operate on the left wing, possessing pace, goal threat, and excellent off-the-ball movement, though his finishing ability remains inconsistent.

Here's The Times' Analysis

Barcola was positioned at the far post. He spread his arms wide, enthusiastically signaling his teammates for the ball. When it arrived, he struck it powerfully with his right foot, sending it straight into the top corner.

Now, Liverpool certainly hopes such scenes will continue, as they are set to bring Barcola to Anfield and make him the third signing to exceed £100 million in the past 15 months. Nearly four years ago, they had actually witnessed similar moments firsthand.

In December 2022, during the World Cup in Qatar, Liverpool played a friendly against Olympique Lyonnais in Dubai.

Klopp's Liverpool ultimately lost 1-3. Barcola, then just 20 years old, received a pass from a player who was then 19 — Cherki — after a series of dribbles, and eventually scored.

Given their respective growth trajectories, they had already entered the radar of European giants: both had shown talent in various French youth teams, and Olympique Lyonnais has long been regarded as a renowned "talent factory" in European football. Nevertheless, their performance in that match still left an impression on Liverpool.

Barcola, now 23, scored 3 goals for France in this summer's World Cup.

In a sense, Barcola's upcoming transfer to Anfield can also be seen as a reward for Liverpool's patient pursuit.

Initially, Liverpool identified Barcola as a player deserving continued attention. Even after PSG signed him for approximately €45 million in August 2023, they never stopped monitoring him.

Then last summer, Barcola began showing signs of dissatisfaction with his status at PSG. He was set to be behind Diouf and Kvaratskhelia, which seemed to gradually wear on his patience.

Liverpool was linked with the French winger at the time, but as the club had already spent £450 million, including potential deals for Wirtz and Isak that reached £241 million, they could not invest further at that moment.

However, it is almost certain that Liverpool maintained contact with Barcola's representatives. And when the real transfer battle began, this consistently maintained relationship gave Liverpool an advantage.

In this transfer window, Liverpool had to engage in another form of patience.

PSG's initial valuation for Barcola was reportedly €170 million, or £145 million. For any manager, naturally, new signings are hoped to arrive as soon as possible, but such a price was clearly prohibitive.

Barcola refused to renew his contract with PSG, with two years remaining on his current deal. This gave Liverpool greater confidence to remain patient, hoping that over time, the Champions League winners would lower their asking price.

Now, a deal in principle has been reached between the two parties, with a transfer fee slightly above £100 million, and with add-ons, the overall package should reach approximately £120 million. This means Liverpool ultimately saved roughly £20-25 million.

This is a considerable saving, and these funds could perhaps be invested in another player. However, if Liverpool truly wants to extract real value from this deal, then Barcola must prove his worth on the pitch.

As with Isak and Wirtz, completing the transfer is only the beginning; the truly difficult part is for the player to live up to his price tag on the field.

Within PSG, people jokingly and proudly referred to this summer as the "greatest reserve squad fire sale in history".

Gonçalo Ramos joined Milan for €75 million, or £64 million, Lee Kang-in transferred to Atlético Madrid for €40 million, and Barcola is now set to join Liverpool for approximately £120 million.

That is, PSG will receive a total of €255 million in transfer revenue from players who were not always Enrique's first-choice.

Nonetheless, Liverpool remains willing to wager again that Barcola can develop into a world-class star. And following the major high-value transfers among Premier League clubs this summer, this 23-year-old French winger will also bring renewed strength to the league.

Based on past performances, Barcola — nicknamed "Grasshopper" in his youth for his extreme pace — can bring goal threat, explosive speed, and exceptional dynamism and impact to Liverpool, both with and without the ball.

Liverpool manager Arne Slot has clarified that he wants his wingers to be able to operate across both flanks. However, Barcola himself prefers to play on the left, so in terms of positioning, he is more of a replacement for Luis Díaz than for Salah.

Therefore, Gakpo's future will also receive greater scrutiny. Currently, Tottenham Hotspur wants to sign the Dutch forward, and Manchester City has also enquired about his situation.

In the 2024-25 season, Barcola contributed 42 goals in 64 appearances, including 21 goals and 21 assists. However, this figure dropped to 20 last season.

Barcola is sometimes criticized for lacking killer instinct in front of goal. However, Opta Analyst points out that over the past two seasons, Barcola's big chance conversion rate stands at 28.7%, scoring 25 goals from 87 big chances.

For reference, Bayern Munich's Michael Olise, considered one of the world's best wingers, scored 16 goals from 58 big chances, with a conversion rate of 27.6%.

However, given the way Slot wants the team to play, Barcola's off-the-ball movement and his willingness to actively compete for possession in the final third will also be highly valued by Liverpool.

Since last summer, Liverpool's total spending is set to reach approximately £670 million, and before the transfer window closes on September 1st, the squad still needs to sign a right winger.

Previously, Liverpool had shown varying degrees of interest in Minteh, Ismaïla Sarr, and Endrick.

From external reports, the squad still has several areas requiring reinforcement, and supporters and commentators have highlighted gaps in the squad.

However, since Michael Edwards, former sporting director and later CEO of Fenway Sports Group Football Operations, began overseeing Anfield's football affairs approximately 10 years ago, Liverpool has gradually adopted a squad-building model of "quality over quantity".

This does not mean the club's leadership cannot see the squad's problems, nor does it mean they fail to understand the benefits of expanding squad depth.

On the contrary, their choice is to prioritize investing resources in elite talent when it becomes available on the market, given their limited resources.

For Liverpool, their logic is clear: the Premier League is increasingly struggling to attract and retain world-class players, and in such circumstances, it would be a mistake for the club to adopt the opposite strategy.

At the same time, the club is also aware that the squad overhaul over the past 12 months has not yet borne fruit.

And for Barcola, now is the time that all the previous patient pursuit pays off.

Tradotto dall'IA.

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