There is a sense that Liverpool are starting to up the tempo as they look to rewire the Anfield frontline at the start of the Andoni Iraola era, with the Spanish tinkerer chosen to replace Arne Slot after last year's plummet.

A disastrous 2025/26 campaign pulled Liverpool far away from their expected position on the Premier League battleground, fighting against the likes of Arsenal and Manchester City at the summit. Instead, they fell by the wayside, just about securing Champions League football with a fifth-place finish.

The careworn Slot went through a lot during his two-year tenure, and he should keep his head held high, but changes had to be rung.

Mohamed Salah and Andy Robertson were also among those to leave after so many illustrious years at the club. Salah's drop-off last year was sad to witness, but now he needs replacing, and FSG appear intent on signing Monaco's Maghnes Akliouche to complete that job.

Why Akliouche is the perfect Salah replacement

Paris Saint-Germain are in the driving seat to complete a deal for Akliouche this summer, but Liverpool are determined to swoop in, having made an initial approach for Monaco attacking midfielder this week.

Hailed as a "ridiculous" technician by analyst and Como scout Ben Mattinson, the 24-year-old only posted six goals and six assists apiece in Ligue 1 last year, but that is not his wheelhouse; he is a clever, interconnecting playmaker, not a direct goalscorer of Salah's kind.

In a way, Akliouche is perfect. He would cost a fraction of the sum that Liverpool would have to pay to sign RB Leipzig's Yan Diomande, whose direct and potent approach makes him something of a pastiche of Salah in his prime. The pressure, for a 19-year-old newbie, would be immense.

Akliouche's creative focus would also feed into Alexander Isak's strengths. Liverpool's prime goal threat was reoriented last year when so much money was spent on Isak and Hugo Ekitike.

Ekitike is recovering from an Achilles injury and will play no part for months and months yet, while Isak needs to prove himself after a poor, injury-torn first year at Anfield, and with all this in mind, it's perhaps important that FSG wrap up a deal for an elite attacker too.

Liverpool "super keen" to sign Akliouche upgrade

Akliouche and Victor Munoz, who signed for Liverpool from Osasuna in a £35.5m package last month, would make a shrewd up-and-coming wide pairing, but Liverpool need to try and catch a bigger fish besides, and PSG's Bradley Barcola could be that man.

According to Fabrizio Romano, Liverpool are leading the race to sign the France international this summer. Arsenal are also interested, and that interest could intensify after they missed out on Chelsea signing Morgan Rogers, but the pointers lead to Merseyside right now.

The French giants don't want to sell. Barcola, 23, is "one of the best left wingers in the world", according to the earlier-named Mattinson, but he wants a role of greater seniority, and it's proving tough in Luis Enrique's star-studded frontline.

PSG have not yet named their price. They hope to tie him down to a new contract, but that's proving difficult as Liverpool continue to probe. It's expected that FSG would have to stump up a figure eclipsing the £100m mark.

Barcola excelled for France at the World Cup, building on two recent years of dominance with his club, notching 62 goal involvements across two seasons, winning back-to-back Champions League titles and any number of domestic honours too.

The right-sided Akliouche is coveted by PSG, but there's no question that Barcola has more to his game, so fast and deadly in front of goal. He primarily plays down the left, but has featured centrally and out on the right too - where inverted controls demand more focus on his playmaking, rather than seeking out goals for himself.

Liverpool writer Dave Hendrick has actually gone as far as to say that the Les Bleus "superstar" is the "closest thing to Salah" on the market right now, and so while Akliouche's contrasting skillset makes him the right man to bring to the right of Iraola's set-up, Barcola's X-factor could be exactly what the Reds need as a talismanic attacking arrival.

Liverpool's current crop doesn't cut the mustard. It's the plain truth, and FSG's decision-makers need to sort it out quickly if the Reds are going to challenge against the best teams in Europe once again after such a disappointing season.

Iraola's front-footed tactical approach should allow Barcola to prove himself a superstar in England. Liverpool could hit the jackpot on the Frenchman, who may establish himself as the signing of the summer.