Barcola is coming: what we know about the deal

After weeks of grinding negotiations with Paris Saint-Germain, Liverpool have got their man. Bradley Barcola has agreed to join the Reds in a deal that The Athletic has confirmed is worth £123million in total, a £106m guaranteed fee with a further £17m in add-ons. The France international will sign a five-year contract at Anfield, and his medical is expected to take place either today or tomorrow.

There is one extra wrinkle worth noting. Liverpool have reportedly agreed to cover a sell-on clause owed to Barcola's former club Lyon, understood to amount to around £4.3m. According to Le Parisien, the Reds are footing that bill themselves, which technically pushes the true cost a fraction higher than the headline figure. At nine figures and rising, though, that slice barely registers. What does register is that Liverpool could have paid considerably more had they accepted PSG's demands earlier in the summer, making this, despite the eye-watering price tag, a deal that might yet look like decent business.

Gakpo starts but his future stays uncertain

With Barcola arriving on the left, the obvious question hanging over this window is what happens to Cody Gakpo. Andoni Iraola named the Dutchman in the starting line-up against Nottingham Forest this afternoon, and that decision, in isolation, reads as a signal that the manager's priority is to keep him. But Iraola has previously admitted he cannot offer guarantees over Gakpo's future, and interest from Tottenham and Manchester City has not gone away.

The uncertainty around Gakpo is a thread Liverpool supporters will need to keep pulling on as Tuesday's deadline approaches. Starting him against Forest tells you what Iraola wants, it doesn't necessarily tell you what will happen. The Reds are also without Joe Gomez for a few more weeks following his pre-season injury, whilst Hugo Ekitike and Giovanni Leoni also remain unavailable, leaving Andoni Iraola with five absentees to manage heading into a busy run of fixtures.

Victor Munoz makes his full debut as Liverpool eye more arrivals

The Forest fixture also marks a significant personal milestone, with Victor Munoz handed his first full start on the right flank. The Spaniard's arrival earlier in the window, signed ahead of Newcastle, who were also keen, turned heads, and today Anfield gets its first proper look at him from the off. Whether he can provide a long-term solution to the right wing problem left by Mohamed Salah's exit is a question that will take more than one afternoon to answer, but it is a question Liverpool need answering sooner rather than later.

Barcola, for all his quality, is predominantly a left-sided attacker. That means the right flank remains unresolved, and it appears Liverpool know it. Reports suggest the Reds are pursuing Matias Fernandez-Pardo, the 21-year-old Lille and Belgium forward valued at around £60million, with The Telegraph reporting serious interest before Tuesday's deadline. Newcastle were also in the picture for Fernandez-Pardo, meaning Liverpool could once again pip the Magpies to a target. The youngster is capable of playing across the front line and has also been linked primarily as back-up to Alexander Isak, though exactly how that fits Liverpool's thinking is not yet clear from what has been reported.

Sarr still in the picture as deadline day approaches

If Fernandez-Pardo is the left-field name, Ismaila Sarr is the more urgent one. Liverpool reportedly submitted a £50million offer for the Crystal Palace winger earlier this week, and reports from Italy now suggest the Reds are preparing to return with a fresh bid. Sarr, who was absent from Palace's squad for their 4-1 home defeat to Manchester City on Friday, is also attracting interest from Galatasaray and Al-Ittihad, so Liverpool will need to move quickly if they are serious.

At 28, Sarr sits at the older end of the profile Liverpool typically target in the transfer market, and earlier attempts to bring in Brighton's Yankuba Minteh came to nothing. But with the right wing still crying out for a natural occupant and the clock ticking towards Tuesday's deadline, the Reds may settle for a reliable short-to-medium-term fix rather than wait for the perfect fit. The next 48 hours could tell us a great deal about how ambitious this window really is.