With the official confirmation that French forward Bradley Barcola has departed PSG for Premier League side Liverpool, here are how the club should plan for life without the winger.
Yesterday, PSG officially announced that forward Bradley Barcola had joined Premier League side Liverpool, ending his three year spell in the French capital.
His time at the club was very successful, scoring 39 goals, registering 35 assists, winning three straight Ligue 1 titles, two Coupe de France trophies, and most notably, two UEFA Champions League titles.
Ironically, it was the latter that made him want to leave, it seems - unhappy that his Georgian counterpart Khvicha Kvaratskhelia had got the nod over him in both finals, he decided it was time for a new challenge.
Good luck to him. There was not a lot more for him to achieve with the Parisians. It would have been easy for him to mop up the trophies, play here and there and pick up a wage, so fair play for taking him outside of his comfort zone with a new team, in a new league and a new language.
As for PSG, well how do they go about replacing the 23-year old?
Well, in terms of the pure like for like replacement, the club had moved proactively to bring in winger Mika Godts from AFC Ajax, well before Barcola’s departure was confirmed.
However, you can’t help but notice that Godts is a different type of winger. He is more ball to feet, a dribbler, a carrier, a ball manipulator if you will. Barcola was more of an outlet, someone to run in behind. Ultimately, he was a lot quicker than the Belgian international.
Whilst with Desire Doue, you also have a ball to feet dribbler, who has often played in midfield, and many say that that is where he will end up playing in the long term.
Summer recruit Maghnes Akliouche is another similar player. He is not known for his speed or running in behind, rather his ability with the ball at his feet. Another player of that profile.
With Ousmane Dembele, you have a pretty quick player, though not as quick as he once was and more importantly, someone whose style of play has completely evolved to someone who drops deep, links the play and starts attacks.
Then, with Ferran Torres, you have the opposite. Someone who likes to run in behind, play off the shoulder, but it not overly quick. He’s certainly not a slouch, but definitely not rapid or anything like that either.
So, in short, with this sale, and the departure of Ibrahim Mbaye to Aston Villa, as well as the profiles of the new recruits + existing attacking options, PSG feel like they have left themselves short of a pure outlet in behind to stretch defences.
In Ligue 1, this shouldn’t be a major issue overall. More often than not, the team will face low blocks, which suits the profiles of the attackers who can unlock the opposition with their guile and finishing ability.
However, in the UEFA Champions League, it could become more of a problem in certain situations, let’s see. There is also the possibility that if this does become an issue, the situation could be revisited in the January transfer window. Good time to remember that Kvaratskhelia was a winter signing in 2025. Worked out pretty well.
