Liverpool have two draws from as many games in the Premier League this season, but this is the start of a long-term project under Andoni Iraola's wing.

Rome wasn't built in a day, and neither was Jurgen Klopp's dynasty at Anfield. The same logic must be applied here, with Iraola taking the reins of a wayward outfit who fell into a ditch of a decline last season, finishing fifth after previously winning the Premier League at a canter. Even Iraola at Bournemouth needed time, winning one of his first 11 league games.

While Liverpool are in transition, it would be plain wrong to argue that FSG haven't made mistakes over the past several months, over the past several transfer windows.

Iraola argued in his pre-Ipswich press conference that Liverpool opted for the best players over the best positional fits, when asked about the arrival of Bradley Barcola from Paris Saint-Germain.

Why Liverpool spent nine figures on Bradley Barcola

Iraola is excited about the arrival of Barcola, who joined Liverpool from Paris Saint-Germain on the penultimate day of the transfer window in a deal rising to £123m.

The 23-year-old is "one of the best left wingers in the world", according to analyst Ben Mattinson. TIme to prove it. The same has been said about Alexander Isak and Florian Wirtz, who both joined for nine-digit sums last summer but have so far failed to provide Liverpool bang for their buck.

Barcola scored 39 goals and supplied 37 assists across 152 games for PSG. He never quite felt the love from Luis Enrique that Ousmane Dembele and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and Desire Doue were given, though, benched for both of the French side's Champions League final successes.

At Liverpool, he wants to be the main man, and he has the cutting edge and demonstrable superstar power with the foremost outfit of their day to do that.

At surface level, Liverpool are doing pretty well. They have quality across the park. But they are also paper-thin, and while the rebuild must continue over the coming years, Liverpool have at least recruited wisely at the younger level.

Indeed, the Reds have agreed to sign a rising forward next summer who has the potential to emulate Barcola at Anfield.

Liverpool have already signed the next Bradley Barcola

Liverpool have a talented crop of attacking players, but the most exciting of the lot might just be Rio Ngumoha, who has just turned 18 and is already regarded as one of Europe's most exciting up-and-coming wingers. He has played 32 times for Liverpool, scoring two goals and registering an assist.

Ngumoha's emergence is somewhat lightning-in-a-bottle, but in truth, through the arrival of Sidy Barhama Ndiaye, the Merseysiders might just have their next academy superstar, someone whose directness and energy could see him develop into the next Barcola.

Ndiaye, 16, joined Liverpool from Diambars FC in his Senegalese homeland last year, though cannot finalise a move to the club until his 18th birthday in 2027.

Nidaye is rapid and relentless. Data on him is limited at this stage, but Liverpool reporter Bence Bocsak has confirmed that he is "regarded as one of the best prospects in Africa".

With tireless running and fleet-footed dribbling merging with a combative defensive approach that many young forwards fail to showcase during those maiden days, Bocsak was quick to assert that not only is he a "a really exciting talent" but he also "looks like a proper Liverpool winger", someone who can develop into a Barcola-esque attacker for the Reds.

At the U17 World Cup in 2025, Ndiaye absurdly won 10.5 duels per game, featuring down both wings. His versatility is one of the greatest strengths.

Liverpool could have the next Barcola on their hands with this one, someone with a ferocious running style down the (primarily) right wing.

But there's a vacancy on the right that Barcola, a left-sider, will not fill. Could Ndiaye by the man to succeed Mohamed Salah, his African positional peer, in the long run?