‘I hope…’ – Andoni Iraola makes candid Bradley Barcola transfer admission

Andoni Iraola has indicated that he’s hoping for ‘good news soon’ regarding Liverpool’s pursuit of Bradley Barcola.

The Reds have an ‘agreement in principle‘ with Paris Saint-Germain over a prospective move to Anfield for the 23-year-old, with the two clubs reportedly agreeing on a deal to the tune of £120m for the winger.

Ben Jacobs indicated on Wednesday that the transfer could be done and dusted by the weekend, with a growing possibility that an official announcement could come from LFC before their home fixture against Nottingham Forest on Saturday lunchtime.

Iraola held his pre-match press conference this afternoon and was inevitably asked about the pursuit of Barcola.

While he declined to explicitly discuss the PSG star’s individual situation, he was candid about Liverpool’s efforts to bring in a wide attacker before next Tuesday’s transfer deadline.

The Reds’ head coach answered (via Liverpool Echo): “As you know, we are trying to sign in that position. We can’t talk about players who right now aren’t ours, but we are trying to improve and fill that position as we don’t have the numbers. I hope we have good news soon but we are still not there.”

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From Iraola’s words, it seems as though he’s genuinely hopeful that Liverpool will get a deal for Barcola over the line imminently, even if the Forest match on Saturday might come a bit too soon (he’d have to be registered with the Premier League before noon on Friday to be eligible at the weekend).

The Basque has been quite open about the Reds’ need for wide attacking reinforcements, which suggests that even if the PSG star is signed, the Merseysiders could seek to bring in another winger before the Tuesday night deadline.

The balance of LFC’s forward line is very much skewed towards the left wing, where Cody Gakpo, Rio Ngumoha and Victor Munoz are all at their strongest (as is Barcola), yet Federico Chiesa is the only natural right-sided option and he’s been used sparingly over the last two years.

Iraola has already shown a readiness to utilise his wingers on either flank, and thankfully the seemingly Anfield-bound France international is comfortable on both the left and the right.

It looks highly likely that Liverpool will add at least one more wide forward in the PSG maestro before the transfer window shuts, and we wouldn’t rule out the possibility of another being snapped up before Tuesday night.

It’s been a slow summer on the marketplace for the Reds, but we could well be in for a sprint finish!