Liverpool have been quieter than expected in the summer transfer window, but one target now dominates the agenda: Bradley Barcola. The club are believed to be working hard to bring the PSG forward to Anfield.
While Barcola is a left winger by trade and not a natural replacement for Mohamed Salah on the right, he offers more tactical flexibility than many realise. Should the Reds clinch his signature, he could slot into several formations.
Newcastle opener in three weeks
Liverpool face Newcastle in the Premier League opener in just three weeks. Manager Andoni Iraola is already planning his starting lineup, but he will have to improvise with Conor Bradley, Joe Gomez, Hugo Ekitike and Giovanni Leoni all injured.
If Barcola arrives before that game, and with new signing Victor Munoz also in the frame, the Reds could field a brand new attack. Here are three ways Liverpool could line up with Barcola.
4-2-3-1
Iraola is likely to use his favoured formation from his Bournemouth days, with Alisson Becker remaining as No. 1. A flat back four would see Milos Kerkez and Jeremie Frimpong as flying wing-backs, with Virgil van Dijk and Jeremy Jacquet in the centre of defence.
In midfield, Dominik Szoboszlai and Ryan Gravenberch form a double pivot. Ahead of them, a trio of Rio Ngumoha, Florian Wirtz and Barcola would sit behind Alexander Isak. Barcola takes his favoured left-sided role, where he has scored 32 goals and provided 32 assists for PSG and Lyon. Ngumoha moves to the right, a shift Iraola used in the recent pre-season win over Wrexham, while Wirtz operates as the No. 10.
4-3-3
With the same goalkeeper and back four, the change comes in midfield. Szoboszlai, Gravenberch and Wirtz form a more traditional engine room, with Wirtz given freedom to roam while Gravenberch sits slightly deeper.
Up front, Iraola could experiment. Barcola could feature on the right, a side he knows less well but has experience on: seven goals and 15 assists from that flank. New signing Victor Munoz would take his preferred left-wing role, with both wide players supplying Isak, who leads the line alone. Without the ball, this could revert to a compact 4-5-1 to protect a lead.
4-4-1-1
This system would see Wirtz on the left and Ngumoha on the right of a four-man midfield, with Szoboszlai and Gravenberch as the two-man shield in front of the defence. Iraola's wildcard option would be to move Barcola into the No. 10 role behind Isak.
Barcola has played as a centre forward on over 20 occasions, scoring a respectable nine goals. It is a small sample, but he likes to cut inside and sometimes receives the ball in central positions. With a solid midfield four behind him and Wirtz and Ngumoha providing width, Barcola could build a potentially deadly partnership with Isak just off the striker.
