Michael Owen advises Liverpool not to pay £145 million for Bradley Barcola

Former Liverpool striker Michael Owen has strongly advised the club not to pay the astronomical £145 million fee being demanded for Paris Saint-Germain winger Bradley Barcola. The Merseyside club is looking for a new player to strengthen its attack after Mohamed Salah’s shock departure, but such inflated transfer-market prices could put the club in a difficult position. This was reported by Goal.com reports .

In an interview with ECHO, Owen said Paris Saint-Germain were trying to take advantage of Liverpool’s urgent need for a forward. In his view, paying such a fee for a player who has not yet fully proved himself in the Premier League would be illogical and excessively expensive.

The problem of replacing Mohamed Salah

Egyptian star Mohamed Salah left Liverpool and joined Trabzonspor as a free agent. This created a major gap in the team’s attack and forced the club’s management to take urgent action before the transfer window closes.

During his nine years with the Merseyside club, Salah made 442 appearances, scoring 257 goals and providing 123 assists. Thanks to his historic contribution, the team won the Premier League and Champions League titles.

Finding a player capable of adequately replacing the legendary forward has now become a huge challenge for Liverpool’s recruitment department. Unlike in previous years, when the club had outstanding wide players such as Sadio Mané and Luis Díaz, its options at that level are currently limited.

Transfer-market difficulties

The 23-year-old French winger Bradley Barcola, who plays for Paris Saint-Germain, had become Liverpool’s main transfer target. However, the French club’s £145 million asking price could bring any negotiations to a halt.

According to Michael Owen, those around Liverpool are well aware of the club’s desperate need for a high-quality player and are therefore artificially inflating the transfer fee. Although he previously said that signing West Ham forward Jarrod Bowen would make more sense, he admitted that Liverpool may now have to look for other alternatives.