Liverpool FC Forum

I suppose I would prefer Quansah to Gomez just on injury record.

Madrid in for Diomande. If PSG miss our on him doubt they'll sanction the sale of Barcola.

The price Madrid offered is the same as we did so I guess they are trying to get him to force the move to them. Tbh I'm not sure him or Barcola are good enough for the prem. Barcola especially will struggle with the physical aspect.

Was reading the other day and interview with Rio and he is saying the plan is for him to operate on both wings this season. The vibe I'm getting through a lot of the reports is square pegs again. Im not hung up on the above just cos they are 100 mil players because they aren't. I just hope we address a few weak positions to add proper balance to the side.

Also our 1st preseason game against Sunderland is tonight @ 11pm. Really looking fwd to this 

Saw an interview with Dom King who used to write for the Echo but now writes for the Telegraph and he said he had a long chat with Iraola in Chicago and apparent Leoni is still months away from a return and Bradley and Hugo are even further away than him.
Given the severity of their injuries [lets face it not many people hit the ground running straight away after returning from an ACL] we probably wont see the best of them until 27/28.

ycsatbjywtbiastkamb » Sat Jul 25, 2026 2:28 pm wrote:Saw an interview with Dom King who used to write for the Echo but now writes for the Telegraph and he said he had a long chat with Iraola in Chicago and apparent Leoni is still months away from a return and Bradley and Hugo are even further away than him.
Given the severity of their injuries [lets face it not many people hit the ground running straight away after returning from an ACL] we probably wont see the best of them until 27/28.

Balls! I was hoping Leoni was closer to a return than that. And Bradley. Ekitike I read somewhere is not due back until next year!!
I think we're gonna have to spend a few quid or be even further behind the usual suspects

Club to club talks over Ryan from Bournemouth, or is that old news?

bunglemark2 » Sun Jul 26, 2026 5:26 pm wrote:Club to club talks over Ryan from Bournemouth, or is that old news?

I’d rather him than pay over the odds for Barcola

Paris Saint-Germain are willing to sell the France winger Bradley Barcola, but the French and European champions want a fee of £145m - The Times & Daily Telegraph

He’s a fringe player for PSG  (Doue is the starter) and he didn’t really feature much in the French WC side
We seem to have abandoned the original moneyball idea of buying young unknowns at value prices and then improving them into big time players . Now the strategy seems to be we are clueless in the transfer market so let’s buy very expensive overpaid superstars and it’ll all be fine.

At this point I dont see us following up last years spend with another big one this year. We haven't done it before so dont think it will be any different this year. We should bring in at least one but id rather 2 unknowns instead of Barcola. If we do spend that kind of money then id rather Rayan instead. Id bet FSG's plan is to wait till the investment is secured and then they will give us a loan to bring in a few.

Again reports from various sources talk about utilising what we have. Grav is the latest being discussed as being used as a CH. We might end up going with him and Endo filling the gaps there till Leoni and Jaquet sort themselves out.

I am hoping, yes hoping, that the club is not daft enough to even consider spending that on Barcola. Admittedly I've only seen him due PSG in the CL, and the odd appearance for France, and for me he is absolutely nowhere near worth that hyperinflated valuation. A million miles from it, in fact.
It actually pi$$es me off that in recent years we haven't managed to uncover, or develop from within, or beat other clubs to talent that others seem to regularly produce.
Think Kroupi, or Baleba, or Huijsen, or a half dozen other players in different positions all over the park that Palace, Brighton, Bournemouth or even Citeh have developed. We're always buying at inflated prices once these players have shown what they can do when given a chance and trusted by other clubs

July 29, 2026 · Craig Houlden ·
Liverpool Must Stop Planning And Start Acting
There are just over three weeks until Liverpool begin the new Premier League season, and I am finding it increasingly difficult to understand why so much of the club’s transfer business still appears to be sitting in the planning stage.
I know the World Cup delayed things. I know some deals are complicated. I know clubs do not always move at the speed supporters would like. None of that changes the simple reality that Andoni Iraola is already deep into pre-season and has not yet had the opportunity to work properly with the new players Liverpool still need to add.
That is the part which concerns me most.
Supporters often look at the end of the transfer window as the deadline, but managers do not see it that way. Iraola is trying to implement a completely different style, one based on intensity, aggressive pressing, and players’ understanding exactly when to move, when to engage, and when to take risks. Those details are learned on the training ground, and every day Liverpool spend waiting is another day the manager cannot use.
You cannot get pre-season weeks back.

If Liverpool sign three or four players in the final days of August, the club may technically have completed the business, but those players will still have missed valuable time. They will need to learn the system while the competitive matches are already underway, and every point dropped during that period could matter later in the season.
That is why I struggle with the idea that supporters should simply relax.
The squad is currently weaker in numbers than it was at the end of last season. Senior players have departed, several futures remain uncertain, and there are still obvious issues at right back, centre back, and in attack. We may also need a particular profile in midfield depending on what happens with Alexis Mac Allister, Curtis Jones, and Stefan Bajcetic.

That is a significant amount of work to squeeze into the remaining weeks.

Bradley Barcola is the clearest example of the problem. Liverpool have reportedly admired him for a long time. The player appears open to the move, and there is a widespread expectation that he will not sign a new contract with Paris Saint-Germain. If those things are accurate, Liverpool should already be pushing the situation forward.
I am not suggesting the club should simply hand PSG whatever figure they demand. Negotiation matters, particularly when the numbers being discussed are so significant. However, there is a difference between negotiating carefully and allowing another club to dictate the entire pace of your summer.
Liverpool can submit a bid. They can test PSG’s resolve. They can start a serious conversation and find out whether a compromise is possible. What they cannot afford to do is wait until the market has narrowed and then discover they have run out of time to pursue another target.
We have seen that film before.
Diomande is now going to Real Madrid, and whatever happened during that saga, the result is that another priority target has disappeared. Liverpool must respond decisively rather than allowing disappointment in one deal to delay everything else.
The same applies in defence.

Joe Gomez’s injury during the first pre-season match should have been another reminder that the current options are not enough. Liverpool need a centre back, and they need a right back. Trying to solve both positions with one hybrid signing may be financially attractive, but it does not necessarily give Iraola the depth required across a long season.
This is a World Cup year. Players will carry additional fatigue, Liverpool will be competing in multiple competitions, and Iraola’s style will demand enormous physical output. That makes a deeper squad essential rather than optional.
I am also tired of hearing that Liverpool should be content to overachieve.
This is one of the biggest clubs in world football. The revenues are there, the Champions League money is there, and several major salaries have already been removed from the wage bill. Nobody is asking FSG to place the club in financial danger, but supporters are entitled to ask where the footballing ambition is being expressed.
Plans are not enough.
Liverpool were praised for supposedly identifying their targets early and having everything prepared. If that was true, this is the moment to execute those plans. Iraola deserves the strongest possible chance to succeed, and the players already at the club deserve reinforcements capable of sharing the workload.
There is still time for this to become a very good transfer window.
Barcola could transform the attack. Rayan remains an exciting possibility, whether that move is explored now or later. A strong centre back and a dependable full back would significantly improve the balance of the squad.
But Liverpool have to begin moving.
The season will not wait for negotiations to become convenient, and Newcastle will not care whether Liverpool were still preparing bids during pre-season.
The club can still get this right, but patience is becoming harder to justify with every passing day.