Liverpool Move Closer to Sealing Ibrahim Mbaye Deal
Liverpool are said to have edged nearer to landing PSG winger Ibrahim Mbaye, with the 18-year-old strongly linked alongside teammate Bradley Barcola as the club looks to bolster its wide attacking options in the closing fortnight of the window.
Neither player featured for PSG in their Trophée des Champions loss to Lens on Sunday, with Luis Enrique appearing irritated when pressed on their futures after the match.
French journalist Fabrice Hawkins reported on Monday evening that Liverpool have now struck an agreement with Mbaye on personal terms, with both sides settling on the financial details of a five-year deal. According to Hawkins, Mbaye has made up his mind and turned down interest from Bayer Leverkusen to push for the move to Anfield. He added that Liverpool will now shift focus to negotiating with PSG in hopes of landing both wingers, though the two clubs are yet to agree on valuations for either player.
With personal terms reportedly sorted for both Mbaye and Barcola, everything now hinges on Liverpool and PSG agreeing transfer fees. Liverpool appear to have caught a break with Barcola, whose price is said to have dropped by around £20m — though he’d still command a fee of roughly £125m. Mbaye, by contrast, is valued at a more manageable €50m (£42.8m), making him the more realistic target if Richard Hughes can only land one of the pair.
Pulling off a combined £170m double deal this late in the window would be a major coup for Liverpool’s sporting director, but with both players seemingly keen on the move, there’s genuine optimism that at least one deal gets done before the deadline in two weeks.
With the players on board, it’s now down to the clubs to find common ground on price. There’s confidence that at least one of Barcola or Mbaye ends up at Anfield by the end of the month — and a double signing isn’t out of the question either.
