Bradley Barcola completes record-fee move from PSG to Liverpool
French winger Bradley Barcola, 24, has left Paris Saint-Germain for Liverpool in a deal worth around €125 million plus bonuses, with coaches from both clubs commenting on the transfer.
Deal details
French forward Bradley Barcola, 24, has moved from Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) to Liverpool for a fee of €125 million (about £107m, $145m), with a further €20 million available in bonuses, according to France 24.
PSG's perspective
Speaking ahead of PSG's Ligue 1 home match against Monaco, coach Luis Enrique said "everyone is a winner" from the deal. He explained that Barcola wanted to leave because he sought a bigger role in the team, but said that such standing has to be earned in training and cannot be guaranteed to any player. Enrique praised Barcola as a very important player and a well-liked teammate, noting he still had two years left on his contract before deciding to depart. Last season, Barcola scored 13 goals in 49 appearances across all competitions as PSG retained both the Champions League and Ligue 1 titles. He faced competition for his starting spot from Georgian winger Khvicha Kvaratskhelia. This summer PSG signed three attacking players for a combined fee of around €150 million — Ferran Torres, Maghnes Akliouche and Mika Godts — while selling Goncalo Ramos to AC Milan and Ibrahim Mbaye to Aston Villa. PSG's start to the season has been mixed: draws against Rennes and Lille, a loss to Lens in the French Champions Trophy, but a win over Aston Villa in the UEFA Super Cup. The club opens its Champions League campaign at home to Slovan Bratislava next Wednesday.
Liverpool's perspective
According to Liverpool FC, Barcola completed his move earlier in the week and has since been training with the squad. Head coach Andoni Iraola said Barcola could be available for Liverpool's Premier League match against Ipswich Town, but has yet to decide whether he will start or come on as a substitute, since Barcola has not played since France's World Cup third-place match against England on July 18 — despite appearing in all of France's matches at the tournament. Iraola said the player is "in a good place" but lacks pre-season match minutes.
Liverpool FC also reported that Joe Gomez, Conor Bradley, Federico Chiesa, Hugo Ekitike and Giovanni Leoni remain unavailable for the Ipswich match due to injuries.
