Liverpool FC have officially confirmed the signing of Bradley Barcola on Monday afternoon.
The Reds’ summer-long pursuit of the 23-year-old has finally come to the conclusion that supporters have been eagerly anticipating for weeks, with the France international joining from Paris Saint-Germain on the eve of transfer deadline day.
The Athletic have reported the fee at £106m plus a potential £17m more in add-ons, with the winger putting pen to paper on a five-year contract at Anfield.
Liverpool announce Barcola signing
At 2pm on Monday, Liverpool FC confirmed via their official website that they’ve completed the signing of Barcola (subject to international clearance), having passed a medical over the past 24 hours.
The Merseyside club also announced that the forward will wear the number 29 shirt for the Reds, having also done so with PSG, and he declared his delight at confirmation of the transfer.
He said: “It’s a great pride to be able to play for Liverpool. I’m very happy. 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.”
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Will Barcola hit the ground running for Liverpool?
It’s taken quite some time, but Liverpool finally have Barcola through the door; and unlike with Alexander Isak 12 months ago, they didn’t have to wait until the final hours of deadline day for the transfer to be confirmed.
At an initial £106m (potentially rising to £123m), the Frenchman has become the Reds’ second most expensive signing of all time, so there’ll be an expectation on him to make an immediate impact for Andoni Iraola’s side, starting with the visit to Ipswich on Friday night.
Having the transfer completed today will give him time on the training ground with Andoni Iraola ahead of the fixture at Portman Road, so hopefully the 23-year-old will have become somewhat familiarised with the head coach’s tactical setup by then.
Barcola comes to Liverpool as a two-time Champions League winner who scored 39 goals in 152 appearances for PSG and is a proven performer on the highest stage in Europe, so Kopites will naturally be excited to see what he can produce on Merseyside.
Welcome to the Reds, Bradley – hope you go and smash it!