Is Barcola, Liverpool’s top transfer target, a suitable alternative for Salah? – In excitement, Bradley Barcola extended his arms and wheeled off. The young Frenchman was leading Lyon in a midseason competition in Dubai in 2022. The competition was held to make sure players who weren’t playing at the FIFA World Cup in Qatar kept up their match fitness.
This time, Barcola’s right foot had an influence on Liverpool as he caressed a beautiful attempt past Adrián to help Lyon win 3-1 at Al Maktoum Stadium.
A player who would go on to star multiple times for the Paris Saint-Germain team that has plagued Liverpool in Europe in recent years was initially introduced to some members of the Anfield hierarchy. The Reds will now hope that the 23-year-old can represent a new era on Merseyside under Andoni Iraola after reaching a £120 million agreement that will make Barcola the second-most expensive player in the team’s history.
The Liverpool manager stated this week, “I believe that for a club like us, we need wingers who can make the difference, who can be the man who can make the difference in isolation, who can attack the spaces, and who can also do the defensive work that we are going to demand from them in terms of pressing or sometimes following the full backs.”Additionally, it’s ideal if they can supply numbers. Finding someone who can check every box is challenging, but that is what we are aiming for.
Barcola is undoubtedly one of the rare players who can fulfilll those requirements. The forward has all the makings of one of the Premier League’s top players—he is quick, smart, and has a distinguished background. But how did Barcola rise to prominence as one of the most sought-after players in Europe? And why do Liverpool think he can lead them to the next level? Nobody anticipated that he would become a superstar.
In the dressing room, Barcola has never had the loudest voice. The forward, who is one of six children, began his career at AS Buers Villeurbanne, a local team that also helped establish the career of Real Madrid icon Karim Benzema.
When Barcola was eight years old, he enrolled in Lyon’s academy, where his older brother Malcom was also developing as a goalie. The forward, who was first used as a central striker, advanced through the age levels before joining longtime academy teammate Arthur Pontet in the reserve squad in 2020.”Everyone in the dressing room always really liked Bradley,” Pontet, who is currently an agent, told ESPN.Instead of being an outgoing person or someone who made a lot of noise, he was quite quiet. On the field, however, he was different—he displayed genuine personality and a great deal of self-assurance.
In fact, Barcola’s quick reflexes and ability to dodge opponents earned him the moniker “La Sauterelle” or “The Grasshopper.” But unlike other members of his Lyon cohort, such as Rayan Cherki of Manchester City and Malo Gusto of Chelsea, his ascent was not as quick.
In September 2021, Barcola signed his first professional contract after having a successful season with the club’s Under-19 team, scoring 11 goals in 17 league appearances. He made his competitive debut for Lyon two months later, helping the team defeat Sparta Prague 3-0 in the UEFA Europa League.”People didn’t expect Bradley to become a superstar, but he was always a good player and one of the important players in his age group,” Pontet stated.It wasn’t until he started playing professional football that his true talent became apparent. He rapidly adjusted to that level and began exhibiting some quite remarkable traits. People started to recognize his enormous potential at that point.
Nevertheless, Barcola’s career in Lyon was sparked by a fortuitous series of events. The forward was on track to sign a loan with Swiss team St. Gallen in January 2023 after struggling for playing time under head coach Laurent Blanc. However, the departure of striker Karl Toko Ekambi gave the young Frenchman the opportunity to shine.
Barcola took advantage of the opportunity and finished the second half of the 2022–2023 season with five goals and nine assists in 17 appearances. By the end of that summer, he had signed a five-year contract worth €45 million to play with PSG, the Ligue 1 powerhouses.He’s beginning to make a name for himself.
Barcola quickly realized the demands of playing for one of the biggest teams in the world. He was heavily chastised for being wasteful in front of goal during PSG’s 1-1 draw with Newcastle United in the UEFA Champions League just a few months into his tenure. However, things began to click by December 2023, when Barcola scored his first goal for the Parisians in a 2-1 victory over Nantes.After the game, PSG head coach Luis Enrique stated, “It is a clear bet from the club when we go out and find such a young player, a youth international with a big personality and the quality to burst out.
“For being on a squad like ours, he has a good number of minutes. Both the present and the future are embodied by him. He was outstanding on Saturday nite, scoring an outstanding goal and being the most decisive player in one-on-one situations. There is nothing new about Bradley; he had a fantastic match. I’m thrilled for him.
Barcola was included in Didier Deschamps’ France squad for the 2024 Euros due to his rising form. The forward’s most successful season, which saw him score 21 goals and dish out 21 assists in 64 games in 2024–2025, came before he was integrated into the national squad.When asked about the growing attention he was receiving, Barcola responded, “Frankly, I don’t care,” in a November 2024 interview with Le Parisien. “I try to do the same things as before, regardless of what people say about me. I train every day to avoid hearing comments like “you’re the best” or “you’re the worst.” I don’t find it interesting when others tell you that you’re the strongest because it can damage your ego.”
Barcola has played a significant role in PSG’s transformation under Enrique from star-studded near-men to perhaps the most comprehensive and unified squad in Europe. However, Barcola’s productivity decreased to 13 goals and seven assists in 49 games last season due to greater competition for minutes following the acquisition of Georgia international Khvicha Kvaratskhelia from Napoli in January 2025 and the rise of Désiré Doué.
Barcola was drawn to the idea of joining Liverpool after helping PSG win both the Ligue 1 and Champions League titles in 2026. His performances at the World Cup this summer, where he scored three goals in eight appearances for France as they advanced to the semifinals, further enhanced his reputation at Anfield.Barcola’s international colleague Kylian Mbappé told reporters during the tournament, “It was inevitable that he would reach the highest level, but he did so in his very first season in Paris.” “He’s beginning to make a name for himself on the national squad. Bradley is a quiet person. You must comprehend that. But after you do, you realize what a wonderful man he is.”
The secret of Liverpool’s attack?
Barcola’s ability to get off to a fast start and establish rapport with other players in Liverpool’s costly attack will be crucial to the team’s success this season.
Both Florian Wirtz, who joined in the same window for £116 million from Bayer Leverkusen, and Alexander Isak, who signed a £125 million deal from Newcastle last summer, have yet to reach their full potential on Merseyside, but there is hope that Barcola’s directness and speed will help his teammates reach their full potential.
According to data compiled by Genius Sports, the France international was in the 98th percentile for runs that challenge the backline when compared to other Ligue 1 wingers who played at least 1500 minutes last season. This indicates that he consistently demonstrated the capacity to go past the opposition’s defense and effect change. Additionally, he was in the 98th percentile for both successful attacking one-vones and touches in the opposing penalty box.
An attack that lost key player Mohamed Salah to a free transfer to Trabzonspor this summer will benefit from all of those qualities. Naturally, it will be difficult to duplicate the Egypt international’s incredible output, and Barcola’s contributions will probably come primarily from the left side of the attack rather than Salah’s preferred right flank.
Before Salah’s £120 million transfer to Real Madrid, Liverpool had first considered signing Yan Diomande of RB Leipzig as a more like-for-like replacement. Sources informed ESPN the Reds are still looking for another wide forward.
Barcola has only played 13% of his minutes on the right since joining PSG in 2023, whereas he has played 77% on the left. Iraola expects his wingers to have some tactical flexibility, but it’s probable that the 23-year-old will mostly play in his natural position. This could have an impact on Cody Gakpo’s future in the closing days of the transfer window.
The Reds are certain that they are acquiring a true game-changer in Barcola, despite the fact that several aspects of Liverpool’s offense are still unclear. It is now his responsibility to demonstrate the validity of their faith in him.
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