Liverpool ready move to sign £112m Diomande alternative

Bayern Munich want to sign Rio Ngumoha. That much we know, but whether the 17-year-old prodigy fancies dropping his Liverpool career and signing for the German giants is murkier territory ahead of the summer transfer window.

It’s been a tough season for Liverpool, who crumbled under Arne Slot after so convincingly winning the Premier League during 2024/25. A dreadful run at the end of the year put the writing on the wall for the Dutch coach, and Andoni Iraola has been drafted in as his replacement.

One of the most frustrating elements of Slot’s demise had been his refusal to give Ngumoha enough minutes in the Premier League. The winger was Liverpool’s brightest spark throughout the campaign, but he only started five times in the top flight, including the final three matches, a desperate throw of the dice.

It wasn’t enough to save Slot from the chop, and now Liverpool need to rebuild. Iraola brings fresh ideas, but his arrival won’t alter FSG’s transfer plans too drastically, with Yan Diomande still the Reds’ top target.

Liverpool lining up big-money moves

Diomande, 19, isn’t the only forward on Liverpool’s radar as Mohamed Salah prepares to drape the curtain on his legendary Merseyside, but he is FSG’s number one target.

However, if Liverpool want to get their man, the Germans are looking for a nine-digit figure, and while Liverpool are certainly not misers, it’s unlikely that FSG would sanction a series of signings of the same cost as last year, when sporting director Richard Hughes rebuilt Jurgen Klopp’s attack.

According to le10sport in France, Liverpool are not against turning their transfer cannon to Paris Saint-Germain’s Bradley Barcola instead, with the 23-year-old’s future in Paris uncertain.

PSG want to keep Barcola, but if they fail to extend the France star’s contract, he will need to be sold, heading into his penultimate year.

The ball is still in the Parisians’ court, though, and they are demanding a fee in the same ballpark as Diomande, around €130m (£112m), should Liverpool take their interest to the next stage.

Why Barcola would be a Ngumoha upgrade for Liverpool

Ngumoha’s winning goal against Newcastle United last August earned him a place among the youngest scorers in Premier League history, but he still has more to prove before he can cement himself as a regular starter in Liverpool’s senior set-up.

That’s not to say the electric-paced winger isn’t as talented as they come, though, but Iraola cannot afford to make a slow start at Anfield next season, so it’s understandable that Barcola has been targeted to strengthen the left flank.

The dynamic winger is as slippery as an eel when on the ball, darting this way and that, using his rangy frame in a unique way. In a way, he plays his football down the wing in a similar fashion to Ngumoha, albeit to a more fluent standard, given he has nearly six years on the up-and-coming Liverpool star.

Barcola has scored 34 goals and supplied 28 assists in all competitions for PSG since the start of the 2024/25. He has played an instrumental part in this incredible era under Luis Enrique, and Liverpool would only narrow that chasmic gap by securing such a winger.

Though Khvicha Kvaratskhelia has stopped Barcola from starting each week, he has still been hailed as “one of the best wingers in the world” by Como first-team scout Ben Mattinson, with such a wicked blend of pace and physicality and unpredictability when on the attack.

Liverpool need to make some changes this summer. After all, Slot wasn’t on the pitch himself, and some of Liverpool’s biggest stars should be red-faced after their efforts.

Ngumoha was probably the brightest spark, and it’s vital that he is kept on Merseyside and allowed to develop into a superstar. However, Iraola needs to make an instant impact, and bringing over a world-class talent such as Barcola would help achieve that.