Liverpool Targets Francisco Trincão as Salah Successor

Liverpool’s search for a successor to Mohamed Salah has taken a fresh twist, with Sporting CP’s Francisco Trincão emerging as the latest name on the recruitment radar.

Trincão Steps Into the Frame

With Salah expected to move on and a new era under Arne Slot taking shape, Liverpool’s recruitment team has widened its lens. According to Portuguese outlet Record, relayed by Sport Witness, the club hold a firm interest in Trincão ahead of the summer window.

The numbers demand attention.
Thirteen goals. Eighteen assists. Fifty-three appearances across all competitions for Sporting this season.

At 26, Trincão is no raw project. Comfortable operating off the right flank or dropping into midfield, he offers that blend of versatility and end product Liverpool have long prized in their attacking options. His coach, Rui Borges, has already hinted that a summer move is on the table, and Sporting know they may be braced for bids.

Liverpool spent more than £450m last year reshaping the squad. They are not done. Replacing Salah is not just another item on a recruitment list; it is the defining task of this window. Trincão, with his ability to drift inside, combine in tight spaces and create for others, fits the profile of a wide forward who can help soften the blow of losing one of the club’s greatest modern players.

Diomande Drifts Out of Reach

Trincão’s emergence as a target comes as another name edges away from Anfield’s grasp.

Yan Diomande, the 19‑year‑old who has enjoyed a breakout season at RB Leipzig after joining from CD Leganes last summer, has made his stance clear. Liverpool have monitored him closely, Manchester United have also been linked, but the teenager is not angling for a move.

Asked in Germany whether he expects to be at Leipzig for the 2026/27 season, Diomande did not hesitate: “Yes.”

He expanded on that in an interview with Kicker, stressing his focus on the present rather than the market. “I’m not thinking about that right now. I’m at Leipzig and I enjoy playing here. In the end, it’s always the statistics that count. It’s been a fantastic year for me.”

Leipzig’s hierarchy are just as blunt. Red Bull chief Oliver Mintzlaff has drawn a line in the sand over any potential sale this summer.

“I can say: If I were sporting director, I wouldn't sell this young player, who hasn't even completed a full season with us. No matter what price is being asked,” he said. “I believe he's a player who can still develop further, because he's still very young. And he can certainly become more expensive.”

That is not the language of a club preparing to cash in. It is the language of a project being protected.

Mintzlaff acknowledged the pull of Europe’s giants – “FC Bayern is one of them, but also clubs from England and Spain” – yet underlined Leipzig’s stance. A player delivering outstanding performances should not be walking away after a single year. Champions League football, he argued, gives Leipzig a powerful card to play, alongside Diomande’s long-term contract.

“We want to play in the Champions League,” he said. “And that's naturally an argument for such a young player, to then deliver what he's shown in a second season and potentially develop further – also at an international level… Therefore, I'm completely relaxed about the whole matter.”

Liverpool’s Next Move

So Liverpool, reading the room, pivot. Diomande looks locked in at Leipzig for at least another season. Trincão, by contrast, sits at a different stage of his career and at a club more accustomed to selling when the price is right.

The question now is how aggressively Liverpool push. With Salah’s future pointing away from Anfield and the squad already undergoing a stylistic shift under Slot, this summer demands more than a cosmetic tweak out wide.

If Trincão becomes the man chosen to inherit that right flank, he will not just be filling a vacancy. He will be walking into the most scrutinised role in Liverpool’s rebuild.