Richard Hughes gets answer in hijack deal for £43m France forward | OneFootball

Liverpool remain in need of a right-sided wing option just a few weeks out from the start of the 2026/27 season.

To this point it’s been used as a stick to beat sporting director Richard Hughes and with good reason. Liverpool knew well ahead of the window opening that Mohamed Salah would be leaving the club.

The Egyptian King reached an agreement to rip up his £400k per week deal one year early - and now looks destined to sign for Besiktas.

Liverpool tried and failed to sign Yan Diomande with RB Leipzig rejecting a bid worth up to €100m from Anfield.

Liverpool attempt Akliouche hijack

And it very much appears that no contingency plan has been put in place in lieu of missing out on the 19-year-old.

Players have been mentioned in their droves - with Yankuba Minteh, Matias Fernandez-Pardo and Said El Mala all confirmed targets for the 2024/25 Premier League champions.

And of course Bradley Barcola remains of interest but right now his price would probably have to come down from around £128m before the Merseysiders can do business.

Intrigue was added on Wednesday when the name of Maghnes Akliouche was once again mentioned.

Maghnes Akliouche a good stylistic match for Salah

Sky Sports ran a report claiming Liverpool were interested in doing a deal for the AS Monaco winger - who is a good stylistic match for Salah.

The strange thing about this report is that a deal to bring the France FIFA World Cup star to Paris Saint-Germain appeared to be very far advanced.

It would be a curious development if Liverpool came back in at this late stage but perhaps an indication of the lack of groundwork put in on any other deal besides Diomande.

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Third parties tried to hijack Akliouche deal

“Amid those ongoing negotiations, intermediaries have contacted Akliouche’s camp claiming to be working on Liverpool‘s behalf in an attempt to gauge whether the player’s stance had changed,” a report in TEAMtalk reads.

The report also adds that this approach has not turned any heads - with PSG still confident of wrapping up a deal for the left-footed 24-year-old.

Maghnes Akliouche: Situation summary

Maghnes Akliouche is a 24-year-old Monaco attacker, left-footed and technically refined, who can operate from the right wing or as a central creator.

He is at his best receiving between the lines, carrying the ball into danger and linking play rather than playing as a pure touchline winger.

Monaco have him contracted until June 2028, so they are in a strong negotiating position and have already been tough on bids. His market value is now in the €50m range, which means any move will need to be premium-level business.

PSG remain the clearest destination, with Liverpool also probing the conditions of a deal, but Monaco are unlikely to let him go cheaply. If he leaves this summer, PSG still looks the most natural fit.