Liverpool agree £120m for Bradley Barcola. Most such late deals went through.
Liverpool agreed to pay Paris Saint-Germain about €140m for Bradley Barcola. The deadline for Premier League transfers is 11pm on 1 September.
What happened
ESPN reports Liverpool have agreed a fee of around €140m with Paris Saint-Germain for Bradley Barcola, with a five-year contract in place and the club awaiting PSG clearance for a medical.
The fee, about £120m, includes at least £100m guaranteed. Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) first asked for a reported £145m. Barcola, a 23-year-old France forward, would be Liverpool’s second most expensive signing, after Alexander Isak at £125m.
The move is not complete. Liverpool are waiting for PSG to allow the player’s medical check. The manager said in public that he hoped for good news but that the club were not there yet. ESPN also reports that Liverpool are following Ismaïla Sarr while the Barcola deal waits.
The window closes at 11pm UK time on Tuesday . It opened on . A deal sheet sent in correctly before the deadline gives up to two extra hours to finish the paperwork. Liverpool play Nottingham Forest at Anfield on .
Sources: ESPN (2), Premier League, Al Jazeera
The Pattern
We looked for big transfer fees agreed by Premier League clubs in the last days of a window since 2022, and asked whether the deal was done before the window shut. We found four. In the one that failed, the fee was agreed and the selling club pulled out because it had not found a replacement.
Show the other 2 cases
The Read
History points to a completed deal. The fee is agreed at €140m after a first asking price of £145m, which looks like a negotiation that has ended, and the player’s five-year contract is in place. Liverpool have done this twice in twelve months, including Isak on deadline day after a first offer was turned down. PSG have other players in that position, and the cost of their squad gives them a reason to take a fee above £100m for a player with two years left on his contract.
The weak point is that the last step belongs to PSG. Only PSG can clear the medical. A year ago Crystal Palace walked away from an agreed fee for Guéhi at the last hour, even with a deal sheet sent, because they had not found a replacement. PSG are the defending European champions, their Champions League games start on , and they have no clear reason to weaken their attack in the four days before.
PSG’s own search is the thing to watch. If they find no replacement before Tuesday evening, the deal is likely to fail as Guéhi’s did.
Disclaimer
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