Barcola made 152 appearances in all competitions for PSG
Published2 hours ago
Liverpool have completed the signing of France forward Bradley Barcola from Paris St-Germain for a fee worth up to £123m.
PSG initially valued the 23-year-old at £145m, but Liverpool will pay an initial £106m plus £17m in potential add-ons.
Barcola has signed a five-year contract to become the fifth new arrival at Anfield this summer, following the signings of winger Victor Munoz and defenders Jeremy Jacquet, Ronald Araujo and Ifeanyi Ndukwe.
"It took a long time but I'm really happy today to be able to play for Liverpool and all I want is to be on the pitch and be able to play," Barcola said.
"I hope to achieve very big things. First of all, winning the Premier League – it's one of my biggest dreams in my life.
"It is to do that and to stay in this team in the long term – that's why I signed a long contract – and I hope I can do it."
Barcola, who will wear the number 29 shirt at Anfield, prefers to play on the left wing but can operate across the forward line.
The France international will add depth to Andoni Iraola's squad following the departure of Mohamed Salah, the long-term injury absence of Hugo Ekitike, and the potential sale of Cody Gakpo.
Last season, Barcola scored 13 goals and provided seven assists in 49 games in all competitions for PSG.
He featured in all eight of France's games at the 2026 World Cup, scoring three goals as Les Bleus reached the third-place play-off.
Barcola joined PSG from Lyon in 2023 for a reported £38.5m and won three Ligue 1 titles, two Champions Leagues, the French Cup twice, the Uefa Super Cup and the Fifa Intercontinental Cup.
The fee Liverpool have agreed to pay includes covering a solidarity payment PSG owe Lyon as part of the deal that took Barcola to Paris three years ago.
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The stats that show Barcola's strengths
Barcola is a left winger by trade, having played almost all of his Champions League minutes for PSG on that flank, but his game is shaped by a centre-forward's instincts. He played as a striker until the age of 17, something reflected in his movement and shot selection.
Last season, he averaged 3.5 shots per 90 minutes in Ligue 1, placing him among the division's most active shooters despite operating from wide areas.
His 9.83 expected goals (xG) ranked in the 95th percentile among wingers across Europe's top five leagues, meaning only around 5% of wide players consistently found themselves in better goalscoring positions.
Barcola converted those chances into 11 league goals, outperforming his xG, while no PSG player or Ligue 1 winger recorded a higher xG total during the 2025-26 campaign.
Those instincts are reflected in how he attacks defenders. Barcola was the only player across Europe's top five leagues to average more than two shot-ending carries per 90 minutes (2.06), illustrating his ability to drive at opponents before creating shooting opportunities for himself.
He also averaged 8.69 touches in the opposition penalty area per 90 minutes – the seventh-highest figure among more than 1,500 eligible players – reinforcing the profile of a winger who consistently occupies goalscoring positions.
His shot map highlights a player who attacks dangerous central areas rather than settling for speculative efforts from distance. Only Ousmane Dembele had a better combined shot volume with chance creation in Ligue 1, underlining Barcola's rare ability to both finish attacks and create opportunities for team-mates.
His work without the ball is another reason Liverpool's recruitment team admired him. Barcola ranked ninth across Europe's top five leagues for possessions won in the final third last season, a metric that reflects the aggressive pressing and intensity demanded under Andoni Iraola.
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