Fabrizio Romano claimed Liverpool are interested in signing a young French talent who models his game on Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.
While news emerged this week that Liverpool had ended their pursuit of Jude Bellingham due to the likely cost of the transfer, the Reds are still expected to be extremely active in the summer.
In particular, the Liverpool recruitment staff will be targeting new midfielders in the off-season, with the likes of Moises Caicedo, Mason Mount and Conor Gallagher having all been linked.
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However, Liverpool will likely seek signings across the pitch. The club are reportedly looking to bolster their defensive options, with Chelsea’s Levi Colwill having been linked, while Romano has claimed the club are pursuing Lyon winger Bradley Barcola.
The transfer guru tweeted: “Many European clubs are tracking OL talented winger Bradley Barcola, born in 2002. Understand Liverpool are among [the] teams monitoring his development with their scouts but the race is open.
“Barcola has 7 goals and 4 assists with OL first team this season.”
Barcola’s Aubameyang influence
Barcola admitted in a throwback interview that he models his game on Chelsea striker Aubameyang.
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The youngster told French publication Onze in 2018: “My examples are Cristiano Ronaldo and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.
“I have almost the same game as him and above all the same style. I love watching Aubam's videos. Its burst of speed and quality of finish impress me."
Such news will be music to the ears of Klopp, who managed the former Gabonese international at Borussia Dortmund for two seasons between 2013 and 2015.
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The German was a big fan of the striker, as he detailed in a 2018 press conference.
On Aubameyang Klopp said via the Mirror: “Yes, the biggest threat: speed and goal threat. It’s unbelievable.
“He’s one of the best players for the counter-attack that you can find on this planet because of the timing of the runs and the really outstanding finishing record in situations like that.
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“When we scouted him at Saint-Etienne he played more from the wing and he played more for me at Dortmund on the wing as well because for us it was not clear how he could keep the ball up front with his back to the opponent, stuff like that.
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“But then he ended up doing that really well as well. He can play both positions, from the wing or as a single striker or together with another striker.
“This makes him a very good player to be honest. He’s a really nice guy with different tastes gear-wise, stuff like that. It was always really a pleasure to work with him.”
Topics: Football, Transfers, Lyon, Liverpool, Jurgen Klopp, Chelsea, Borussia Dortmund, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang