Liverpool’s summer isn’t messing around. New coach Andoni Iraola is in the door, the attack is being reshuffled, and the pressure that comes with replacing an all-time great is already shaping every decision. According to The Athletic, the club has zeroed in on its top target to fill the void left by Mohamed Salah, and it’s a name that brings serious juice.
That name is Bradley Barcola. The 23-year-old French winger is currently playing for Paris Saint-Germain, and Liverpool wants him badly. The Athletic put it plainly: Barcola remains the club’s primary target as they look to bring in an elite replacement for Salah. That one sentence tells you everything about the scale of what Iraola is walking into. Replacing Salah in any era was always going to be the hardest job in European football. Doing it while installing a new coach and trying to rebuild momentum after a brutal 2025-26 campaign? That’s a different level of difficulty entirely.
Barcola fits the profile of a modern, game-breaking winger. He’s young, technically smooth, already producing at a high level for one of the world’s biggest clubs. Signing him would be a huge statement early in Iraola’s tenure. But getting him out of PSG is not going to be straightforward. The Parisians don’t let go of prime talent easily, and they know Liverpool is negotiating from a position of need. That need is real. With Salah gone and Hugo Ekitike sidelined until midseason with an Achilles injury, Liverpool’s attack is thin in a way it hasn’t been in years. This isn’t a vanity signing. It’s a necessity.
Defense Is the Real Headache
As urgent as the attacking situation is, the back line might be the bigger concern right now. Iraola himself has been candid about it. He used the word “thin” to describe Liverpool’s defensive depth, and that’s not coach speak. That’s a straight diagnosis. Giovanni Leoni and Conor Bradley are both recovering from serious knee injuries. The Athletic reports the club ideally wants to bring in a defender who can cover both center-back and right-back. That kind of versatility isn’t a luxury at this point. It’s survival. Liverpool has seen what happens when injuries pile up across a long season. A player who can slide into two spots without dropping the level would give Iraola flexibility and keep the team from burning out guys coming back from injury or forcing midfielders into emergency roles.
There’s something refreshing about Iraola’s honesty here. He’s not dressing up the problem or hiding behind vague optimism. He sees a shortage and wants it fixed. The club’s recruitment team would be smart to move fast. Seasons get decided by whether you solve these problems in July and August or regret them in November.
The Midfield Puzzle Involves Two Familiar Faces
Then there’s the midfield, where the biggest questions center on Curtis Jones and Harvey Elliott. The Athletic notes that much of Liverpool’s planning hinges on what happens with those two. Jones is in the final year of his contract and has drawn interest from Inter Milan this summer. That’s a delicate spot for a local kid who has talent but hasn’t always turned potential into consistent production. If Liverpool can’t get a renewal done, the club has a decision to make that goes beyond football. Letting a homegrown player walk for nothing carries its own cost.
Elliott’s situation is different but maybe more poignant. He’s coming back from a disappointing loan spell at Aston Villa and is waiting to see where he stands under the new coach. He’s still a player with real touch and vision, but he can’t afford another season in limbo. Iraola has to decide quickly whether Elliott fits his plans or whether the kid needs a fresh start somewhere else.
There’s also 19-year-old Trey Nyoni in the mix. The club has high hopes for him, but it’s not clear yet whether he’ll get minutes this season or go out on loan to get regular playing time. That’s another call that will tell us a lot about Iraola’s approach.
Liverpool has a lot of balls in the air right now. The decisions made over the next few weeks will define not just this season, but how the post-Salah era really looks.
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