Liverpool are ready to submit an opening offer for Paris Saint-Germain winger Bradley Barcola but have no intention of meeting the French champions’ €170m (£145m) valuation.
The Premier League club are targeting high-level attacking reinforcements before the new season and, according to The Athletic, have placed the France international among their leading priorities.
Barcola, who was born in France and has Togolese origins, is understood to be keen on a move to Anfield. The prospect of joining Liverpool and playing in the Premier League is said to appeal to the former Olympique Lyonnais forward, who has been making steady progress since his arrival at PSG.
His desire to make the switch could smooth talks between the clubs, but the scale of PSG’s demands means any agreement is likely to be difficult to reach.
PSG set firm valuation
PSG, fully aware of the potential and current importance of their young winger, are determined not to sell him cheaply. The French champions have set an asking price in the region of €170m, which is presented as the equivalent of about £145m.
Liverpool view that figure as excessive and are not prepared to match it, but are still expected to lodge an initial proposal to open formal negotiations with the Ligue 1 side.
The move would represent the first concrete step in what could become one of the defining transfer stories of the closing stages of the current window.
Complex negotiations expected
Despite Liverpool’s clear interest and Barcola’s openness to the transfer, there remains a significant gap between PSG’s valuation and the level of investment the Merseyside club are willing to consider.
That disparity points towards a protracted and delicate negotiating process, with neither side currently minded to compromise significantly on their stance.
The coming weeks are expected to be crucial for Barcola’s future. The 21-year-old’s market value is estimated at €90m by Transfermarkt, underlining the distance between independent assessments and PSG’s internal valuation.
With the player’s preference leaning towards a move to Anfield and PSG maintaining a firm position over the fee they expect to receive, the situation has the potential to develop into one of the most closely watched transfer sagas of the final part of the summer window.
