Liverpool's summer pursuit of a new winger has focused on PSG's Bradley Barcola, with the French international emerging as the club's top target following Mohamed Salah's departure. PSG are demanding a substantial fee, reportedly £145m, to part with the forward.
Barcola transfer update
The ECHO understands that Liverpool have yet to open formal negotiations with PSG for Barcola, despite French outlet L'Equipe reporting that the player has given a 'verbal agreement' to join the Reds. Any deal is expected to cost Liverpool more than £100m.
Reports that Barcola has opted against signing a new contract with PSG could leave him in an uncomfortable position. PSG manager Luis Enrique is said to want only fully committed players, and Barcola may find himself starved of game time if he stays while resisting a new deal.
PSG are holding out for £145m, citing Morgan Rogers' £117m move from Aston Villa to Chelsea as a benchmark. Liverpool previously broke their transfer record twice last summer for Florian Wirtz and Alexander Isak.
Salah's Besiktas talks break down
Mohamed Salah's potential move to Besiktas has collapsed. Besiktas sporting director Onder Ozen revealed that his club withdrew from negotiations, stating that Salah's representatives also are in talks with another club.
Ozen said: "We contacted Salah, this also involved a financing model. Salah is a global star, a respected athlete. We met with Salah three times before the financial part of the negotiations was discussed. Up to this point, everything was smooth. When the financial side began, the initial smoothness slowed down from July 21st onwards. Requests began to arrive that would both disrupt the flow of information and create a deadlock in the financial process. I can assume that a respected athlete like Salah was unaware of this. The club has a policy, and it cannot deviate from that policy, our President has very clearly identified his position and has stayed there. I don't have a chance to say yes or no, Besiktas's offer, made under its own terms, is clear. If a response comes to this offer, it can be evaluated. But Besiktas will not make another offer. They said they are also in talks with another club, maybe they will get a result from there. The last offer we made to Salah is the final point that does not harm Besiktas' club identity."
Salah is now a free agent after leaving Liverpool this summer. He scored 257 goals and provided 123 assists in 442 appearances for the club across all competitions.
