Liverpool Escalate Bradley Barcola Pursuit as PSG Star Snubs Arsenal, Eyes Ibrahim Mbaye Too

Liverpool have made their move. The Reds have submitted an opening bid worth roughly £98.5m for Paris Saint-Germain winger Bradley Barcola, kicking off what is shaping up as a summer-defining transfer battle with Arsenal, and the number is expected to keep climbing before this one gets done. PSG have already knocked their asking price down from north of £145m to around £128m, and Liverpool are reportedly readying an improved offer as both sides jockey for the Frenchman’s signature.

Barcola, 23, has established himself as one of Ligue 1’s most electric attacking talents since arriving at the Parc des Princes from Lyon, contributing heavily to PSG’s success under manager Luis Enrique. He has agreed personal terms with Liverpool already, according to multiple reports, and has reportedly prioritized a move to Anfield over anything Arsenal could offer — a significant edge for new Reds boss Andoni Iraola as he looks to rebuild a wide-attacking group that lost its most iconic piece this summer.

Liverpool’s Overture and PSG’s Sliding Price Tag

Liverpool’s opening offer, worth around €115m (£98.5m) according to L’Equipe, falls short of what PSG have wanted and is expected to be rejected in its current form. But the fact that a bid has landed at all — with sporting director Richard Hughes leading negotiations opposite PSG’s Luis Campos and Barcola’s camp represented by agent Moussa Sissoko — signals real momentum. PSG’s willingness to drop their valuation from an eye-watering €170m (£145.2m) figure floated earlier in the window down to roughly £128m suggests the French champions are softening their stance, even if they remain unwilling to sanction a cut-price departure for one of their most productive attackers.

Arsenal, for their part, are reportedly still weighing whether to escalate their own interest after missing out on Vinicius Jr, with manager Mikel Arteta keeping Barcola and Iliman Ndiaye on a shortlist of left-wing targets. But multiple reports indicate the Gunners are unwilling to meet PSG’s asking price and would effectively be playing catch-up to a Liverpool side that has already made contact and locked in personal terms. That dynamic — genuine competition on paper, but a real head start for the Reds — is exactly the kind of subplot that tends to accelerate a transfer saga in August.

Filling the Salah Void and Reinforcing a Battered Backline

Barcola isn’t the only name on Liverpool’s radar. The club has also intensified talks for PSG teenager Ibrahim Mbaye, an 18-year-old Senegal international who made his first-team debut for the Ligue 1 giants at just 16 and has racked up 42 appearances since. Mbaye, primarily a right-sided winger, represents a more affordable long-term option at a reported valuation between £34m and £50m — and crucially, he plays the flank vacated by Mohamed Salah, whose exit from Anfield after nine trophy-laden years left an obvious hole in Liverpool’s attack. Bettors weighing the ripple effects of all this summer movement across the Premier League table can track how sportsbook markets are shifting as the picture becomes clearer.

Liverpool are said to be working on a combined package for Barcola and Mbaye worth close to €200m, underlining just how aggressively Iraola’s side are restructuring their wide options. Reports suggest Maghnes Akliouche’s move to PSG could help clear a path for one or both wingers to head for the exit in Paris, while Bayer Leverkusen, Borussia Dortmund and RB Leipzig have all been mentioned as suitors circling Mbaye, whose representatives — including agent Jorge Mendes — are believed to be waiting on PSG to formally set a price.

What’s Next as the Deadline Approaches

Liverpool haven’t ignored the other end of the pitch, either. An injury-hit backline has pushed the club to explore reinforcements, and Aston Villa’s Ezri Konsa has emerged as a name of interest, with Liverpool reportedly ready to rival Arsenal for the England international’s signature. Villa’s roughly £60m valuation has so far kept that enquiry from advancing into a formal bid. Reports linking the Reds to Tottenham’s Djed Spence appear to have cooled, with transfer insider Ben Jacobs indicating that move isn’t currently active, while Bournemouth’s Illia Zabarnyi has also been floated as a possible defensive target amid the club’s depth concerns.

With the transfer window closing at the end of the month, Liverpool appear determined to land at least one winger — and ideally both Barcola and Mbaye — while shoring up a defense stretched thin by injuries. Not everyone is convinced it’s the right approach: former Liverpool striker Michael Owen has publicly urged the club to walk away from a Barcola deal if PSG’s price climbs back toward £145m, arguing the money might be better spent elsewhere. Whether Iraola’s side heed that advice or push through with a British-record-adjacent fee will go a long way toward defining their season before it even kicks off.