Why Liverpool are ready to make Bradley Barcola their third £100m signing

Liverpool finished fifth in the Premier League last season, 25 points behind champions Arsenal, and the need for attacking reinforcements has become urgent. That is why the Reds are now prepared to make Bradley Barcola their third signing worth more than £100m. The Paris St-Germain and France winger has emerged as the club's main target, with Liverpool willing to pay around £100m. PSG, though, are holding out for a fee closer to £145m. Liverpool have already broken the £100m barrier twice, with Florian Wirtz likely to cost £116m from Bayer Leverkusen and Alexander Isak arriving from Newcastle in September for a club-record £125m. Barcola, 23, joined PSG from Lyon in 2023 for a reported £38.5m. Since then, he has won three Ligue 1 titles, two French Cups, the UEFA Super Cup and the FIFA Intercontinental Cup. He was also a second-half substitute in both of PSG's last two Champions League final wins: 5-0 against Inter Milan in 2024-25 and a penalty shootout victory over Arsenal in May. Although Barcola is right-footed, he is most comfortable on the left wing and can also play on the right or through the middle. Yet he does not play 90 minutes every match. PSG also have Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and Désiré Doué as wide options, while France coach Didier Deschamps regularly rotated between Barcola and Doué at the World Cup. Deschamps kept Ballon d'Or holder Ousmane Dembele on the right, with Barcola and Doué both starting four of France's eight matches - but never together. Barcola has 28 France caps and scored three World Cup goals, including one in the 6-4 loss to England in the third-place play-off. Mohamed Salah's departure on a free transfer at the end of last season, after nine years and 257 goals, has left a huge void. Cody Gakpo has been linked with Tottenham, although Liverpool insist they do not want to sell, and Hugo Ekitike is not expected to play again in 2026 after rupturing his Achilles in April. The data explains why Liverpool see Barcola as the natural successor to Luis Diaz. Opta's similarity model rated Barcola as the closest winger to Diaz's output in Europe's top five leagues, at 78%, ahead of Salah (65%), Lamine Yamal (61%) and Vinicius Junior (61%). Barcola played as a striker until he was 17, and that shows in his movement. He averaged 3.5 shots per 90 in Ligue 1, posted 9.83 expected goals - in the 95th percentile among wingers - and scored 11 league goals, outperforming his xG. No PSG player or Ligue 1 winger had a higher xG total. His directness also stands out. Barcola was the only player in Europe's top five leagues to average more than two shot-ending carries per 90 minutes, and his 8.69 touches in the opposition penalty area per 90 ranked seventh among more than 1,500 players. That combination of striker instincts and dribbling is why Liverpool are ready to make him their next nine-figure statement.