Zürcher Nachrichten - Liverpool sign Barcola from PSG for £124 million

A source close to PSG told AFP that Barcola's transfer is worth "125 million euros (£107 million, $145 million) plus 20 million euros in easily achievable bonuses".

The total fee of £124 million is second only to the £125 million Liverpool paid Newcastle for Sweden star Alexander Isak.

Barcola's fee is the highest ever paid for a Ligue 1 player. It is also the 10th £100 million-plus transfer in Premier League history and the fourth such deal completed this summer.

The 23-year-old is the third forward costing over £100 million that Liverpool have signed in two years.

Isak arrived at Anfield last year and Liverpool also paid around £100 million to sign Florian Wirtz from Bayer Leverkusen. Neither player has yet lived up to the hefty price tag, although Isak missed much of last season due to injury.

Barcola, who signed what Liverpool said was a "long-term deal", had yet to play for PSG this season amid the transfer speculation.

"It's a great pride to be able to play for Liverpool. I'm very happy," he told his new club's website on Monday.

"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.

"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, a member of the PSG squad which won back-to-back Champions League titles in the past two seasons, has long been a Liverpool target.

He scored 39 goals in 152 appearances and won three successive Ligue 1 titles during his time in the French capital after joining PSG from domestic rivals Lyon in a £38.6 million deal in 2023.

Barcola also scored three goals for France during their run to the semi-finals at the recent World Cup.

- Rebuilding the attack -

Liverpool have been looking to strengthen in wide areas since the departure of Mohamed Salah at the end of last season. Luis Diaz's departure the season before left Liverpool's forwards without service from the wings.

They have already signed Spain World Cup-winning winger Victor Munoz from Osasuna in the current transfer window and he has made a bright start, scoring the equaliser in Liverpool's 2-2 draw against Nottingham Forest on Saturday, which followed the same scoreline in their Premier League opener at Newcastle on August 23.

Barcola is expected to play on the left wing, with Cody Gakpo pushed down the pecking order and linked with a move to Manchester City.

Barcola's arrival at Anfield sees him reunited with former PSG team-mate and current fellow France international Hugo Ekitike, who is recovering from a ruptured Achilles tendon.

"I don't know Jeremy (Jacquet), but I was able to talk to Hugo, who I met in the French team and in my old club," said Barcola.

"He was waiting for me to sign the contract, sending me messages often asking me if I was coming or not.

"I can't wait to get back together and be able to play with him. I already said (told him) that it is done."

Barcola was not always first-choice at PSG, with Ousmane Dembele, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and Desire Doue providing stiff competition for places, but he still played a key part in their Champions League triumphs.

B.Brunner--NZN