Liverpool Transfer Deadline Day Verdict: Barcola Arrives, Gakpo Stays, But Big Gaps Still Remain

Liverpool have had movement, noise and plenty of money flying around them in the final hours of the window, but the deeper question remains the same. Have they actually done enough where it matters?

That is the point hanging over this deadline day picture. Bradley Barcola is through the door in a “huge £106million deal”, Cody Gakpo now looks set to stay, and there are younger additions being lined up for the future. Yet the broad shape of the squad still leaves room for unease. There is quality there, no question, but there are also awkward holes in key positions and a sense that this is a squad still relying on hope, flexibility and makeshift answers in places where certainty would have been far better.

According to The Athletic, Liverpool’s business on deadline day is now being shaped heavily by one outcome in particular. “Gakpo is set to stay at Anfield after City had an £80m bid rejected”, and that has a knock-on effect across the forward line. It means that, “despite talks about Yankuba Minteh (Brighton & Hove Albion) and Ismaila Sarr (Crystal Palace), Liverpool are unlikely to make another senior addition in attacking areas.”

That may be read as a sign of confidence internally. It can just as easily be read as a gamble.

Barcola deal changes Liverpool attack

The headline move is obvious enough. Liverpool “landed Bradley Barcola in a huge £106million deal on Monday”, a fee that tells you this is no squad filler and no developmental project in the usual sense. This is major-money recruitment, designed to alter the first-team picture straight away.

Barcola’s arrival gives Liverpool another high-end attacking option, another player capable of carrying the ball, stretching defenders and adding unpredictability in the final third. There is excitement in that, and there should be. Big clubs need players who can change matches in one action, and Liverpool have paid accordingly.

But it also sharpens the scrutiny on the rest of the attack. The source points out that “despite signing Barcola and Munoz, Liverpool still do not have a specific right-sided winger to fill the gap left by Mohamed Salah.” That line matters, because it gets to the nub of this window. Liverpool may have accumulated attacking talent, but accumulation is not the same thing as solving a tactical problem.

The report adds: “The hope is that with a handful of multi-functional forwards, they can all contribute at different times in different positions.” Hope is useful. It is not always a strategy. Great sides can be fluid and adaptable, but they also tend to have balance. Liverpool’s forward line may still be waiting for that balance to reveal itself in practice.

Gakpo staying offers stability

The Gakpo decision feels significant. Manchester City had an “£80m bid rejected”, and Liverpool have drawn a line there. In a market that has often felt frantic and inflated, that is at least one firm act of control.

Keeping Gakpo makes sense. He knows the club, knows the demands, and offers reliable versatility across the front line. In a summer where there has already been churn, keeping a proven senior attacker is hardly a minor detail. It protects depth, preserves continuity and removes the need for another late, expensive attacking scramble.

There is also a message in it. Liverpool are not behaving like a side willing to strip the first-team core for convenience. The source is clear that “there are no plans to entertain offers for first-team players other than those already discussed.” That suggests discipline and, perhaps, an acceptance that the squad already has enough uncertainty elsewhere without opening another flank.

Federico Chiesa remains the one possible complication. “Federico Chiesa could be the only exception, as his future has been uncertain all summer following two seasons spent largely on the sidelines at Anfield.” Still, the same report says that “the growing feeling is that it’s unlikely.” If that holds, Liverpool will at least avoid weakening the attacking group in the final hours.

Harvey Elliott’s move is different in feel and purpose. “Harvey Elliott has travelled to Spain overnight for a medical to join Valencia on a season-long loan.” That is one to watch closely over the season, because Elliott has long looked like the sort of player supporters want to see trusted properly. A loan may aid his development, but it does also reduce one more home-grown creative option from the immediate mix.

Goalkeeping and youth moves show future planning

There is more going on beneath the surface too. Liverpool are close to strengthening in goal, with “18-year-old Lucca Brughmans close to joining for €33million.” The intention, according to the report, “is to send him back to Genk on loan for the remainder of the season unless there’s any late interest in Giorgi Mamardashvili.”

That is interesting business. Spending that sort of money on a teenage goalkeeper tells you Liverpool believe they are securing an elite-level talent before the market moves even further. It is future-facing, assertive and expensive. It also leaves open the possibility of movement around Mamardashvili, which could yet alter the short-term goalkeeping depth chart.

Then there is “a push to bring in 18-year-old winger Djylian N’Guessan from Saint-Etienne after agreeing a fee worth around €5million for the France Under-20 international. He is set to link up with Liverpool next summer.” Again, that is the kind of move clubs make when they are trying to keep one eye on the horizon while dealing with present-day pressures.

Elsewhere, Liverpool have choices to make on younger players. “Keyrol Figueroa, 20, is set to go out on loan prior to Tuesday’s deadline, with two offers on the table.” There has also been “plenty of interest in Luke Chambers, Jayden Danns, Lewis Koumas and James McConnell.” Yet the encouraging line for supporters is that “Koumas, 20, and McConnell, 21, appear certain to stay after impressing Iraola.” Chambers and Danns are “also likely to remain at Liverpool, but a final decision will be taken on Tuesday.”

That tells its own story. Andoni Iraola appears willing to look closely at what is already in the building. That is sensible management, particularly when a squad has obvious gaps and there is young talent capable of helping bridge some of them.

Liverpool squad gaps remain a serious concern

This is where the report bites hardest, because it says plainly what many supporters will already be thinking: “Quite a few, and that’s a big concern.”

That is the answer given when asked whether there are obvious gaps in the squad, and it is difficult to argue with it. The first issue raised is right-back. “Liverpool decided against signing a new right-back despite all the problems in that position last season, and while Ronald Araujo could cover for Jeremie Frimpong in Conor Bradley’s absence, the feeling is that it is far too makeshift.”

That phrase, “far too makeshift”, should ring loudly. Elite sides can cope with one temporary fix. They do not want recurring structural compromises in a position that has already caused trouble. If Liverpool go into the season vulnerable there again, it will not be bad luck. It will be a consequence of choice.

Midfield is another concern. “Another addition in central midfield would also have given the squad a boost following Curtis Jones’ departure.” The report acknowledges that “The gap does open up an opportunity for Nyoni, but there’s a concern that this could be a missed opportunity to strengthen.”

That feels fair. Trey Nyoni is highly regarded, and Liverpool’s rejection of “a £30m bid from Nottingham Forest for 19-year-old midfielder Trey Nyoni on Monday” underlines how much they value him. But valuing a talent and overburdening one are not the same thing. Young players should be brought through from a position of strength, not used as the answer to an issue the market could have addressed more cleanly.

And then the attack comes back into view again. Liverpool have numbers there, talent too, but the source returns to the unresolved point. “Despite signing Barcola and Munoz, Liverpool still do not have a specific right-sided winger to fill the gap left by Mohamed Salah.” You can shuffle good players around all you like, but replacing the functions of a truly elite specialist is another matter entirely.

Our View

Let’s be honest about this, because plenty of Liverpool supporters will be saying the same thing over a pint, on the bus home, or into a phone screen with steam coming out of their ears. This all feels half-finished.

Yes, Barcola is exciting. Yes, keeping Gakpo matters. Yes, there are some talented young lads being kept around the first-team picture. But if “Quite a few, and that’s a big concern” is the verdict on the squad gaps at the end of the window, then what exactly have we been doing all summer?

The right-back situation sounds like an accident waiting to happen. “Far too makeshift” is not a phrase you ever want attached to Liverpool in a title race. Midfield looks light after Curtis Jones going, and asking Nyoni to become the answer straight away is asking a kid to carry grown men’s mistakes. Then there is the right side of the attack. Everyone can see it. Everyone. Yet we are told to believe a collection of “multi-functional forwards” will sort it all out.

That might work for spells. It might even look clever on some weekends. Over the long haul, though, proper squads are built with clarity. Liverpool have spent big, but they have still left too much to improvisation. Supporters can live with risk when there is a plan behind it. What grates here is the feeling that the club have seen the problems and chosen to leave a few of them sitting there anyway.