Liverpool's Pursuit of Bradley Barcola: Romano Confirms Deal is Alive

Fabrizio Romano is doubling down. While reports in England suggested Liverpool had cooled their interest in Bradley Barcola, the transfer specialist insists the opposite is true: the chase is very much on.

Romano: “The deal is alive”

Liverpool have already moved decisively in this window, bringing in Ronald Araujo, Jeremy Jacquet and Victor Munoz. The next big piece of the puzzle is clear. With Mohamed Salah gone, the club see Barcola as a flagship wide signing for the new era.

The PSG winger, under contract until 2028, is reported to be unwilling to extend his deal. That stance has opened the door. He is described as being very keen on a move to Anfield, and talks over a fee have been ongoing.

PSG’s starting position is brutal: £145m. Liverpool, unsurprisingly, are trying to drag that figure down. A report on Friday claimed the Premier League side had decided to pause negotiations, citing two unnamed reasons and hinting at a cooling of interest.

Romano has pushed back hard on that narrative.

On his YouTube channel, he linked the arrivals of new signings elsewhere to potential movement around Barcola’s future and made it clear he has never shifted from his stance.

“The situation of Barcola remains absolutely linked to Liverpool. I never stopped telling you and I remain absolutely all in on this story, because Liverpool want Barcola,” he said.

“Liverpool are negotiating for Barcola, and because I was believing in this news already in April, May, when the story and the narrative around was that Barcola was untouchable. But I remain on this story again today.

“Liverpool are still trying for Barcola. There’s still a gap in financial valuation between what PSG want and what Liverpool offer, but they’re still working for Barcola.

“The financial agreement with the player is okay, and now Liverpool and PSG keep talking, exchanging messages and discussing for Barcola.

“The deal is alive.”

The message is blunt: personal terms are in place, the clubs are still in contact, and the only real obstacle is the size of the cheque Liverpool are willing to write.

Carragher sounds the alarm over Liverpool midfield

While the fanbase fixates on a marquee winger, one of the club’s most influential voices is looking elsewhere and seeing trouble.

Jamie Carragher believes Liverpool’s midfield remains a glaring concern heading into the new season. Speaking on The Overlap Fan Debate, the former defender did not sugar-coat his assessment.

“The midfield for me is still a huge problem for Liverpool,” he said.

“I haven’t watched all the pre-season games, but I watched the last two against decent opposition – it was Leeds and then Monaco.

“And the problem Liverpool had last season was there was space everywhere in midfield. That has not gone away at all.”

The tactical tweak involving Dominik Szoboszlai only deepens his worry.

He continued: “That’s only going to get bigger with the deployment of [Dominik] Szoboszlai in midfield.

“It looks like they’re going to play him, rather than as a number 10, almost as a central midfield player alongside [Ryan] Gravenberch and that is just pure box-to-box.”

So while the recruitment team wrestle with PSG over a nine-figure valuation for Barcola, a more fundamental question hangs over Anfield: can Liverpool fix the heart of their team quickly enough, or will a blockbuster winger arrive to find the same old gaps opening up behind him?