Henry warns Liverpool about using Barcola

Henry warns Liverpool about using Barcola

Despite promoting Bradley Barcola, former French player Thierry Henry believes that Liverpool must build a suitable system to fully exploit the strengths of the $167 million rookie.

"Liverpool fans should be excited about Barcola," Henry began commenting on the Anfield team's new contract on British television channel Sky Sports. "But there is a key point about Barcola: success or failure will depend on how you play the game. If you put Barcola in one-on-one situations, he will definitely develop his abilities. At the same time, if you choose to counter-attack quickly, don't worry because Barcola is fast as hell."

Henry was invited by Sky Sports to give an assessment of Barcola not only because he can bring in-depth perspectives of someone who has played at the top and achieved many achievements. In fact, Liverpool's 2002-born rookie was once a student of Henry himself, when they were both with the French U21 team and won silver medals in men's soccer at the 2024 Olympics.

"Barcola will not hesitate to engage in high-level pressing, ready to attack and defend, not lazy or superficial, always giving up for the team," Henry continued to analyze. "But if you force Barcola to retreat to support defense more than attack, it will not be the ideal environment for him to maximize his potential. So, the problem lies in how you exploit him. In addition, I also want to note that Barcola needs to practice more on his finishing skills."

Before moving to Liverpool in the summer of 2026, the 24-year-old wing striker still had a contract with PSG until 2028. However, Barcola is increasingly becoming a "redundant" in the French team's attack line as he is often ignored by coach Luis Enrique in big matches.

Last season, he started all of PSG's matches in the Champions League up to the second leg of the 1/8 round against Chelsea, before being pushed to the bench in the following rounds. Despite appearing in both recent Champions League finals, Barcola only stopped at the role of substitute, finding it difficult to compete with Khvicha Kvaratskhelia in his preferred position on the left wing.

The inability to play explosively when placed on the right wing or in the slot has limited Barcola's opportunities to play in big matches. Deciding to leave became the only logical choice. In the 2026 World Cup, he scored three goals for the French team.

"Barcola will definitely take a place on the left wing of the attack," Jamie Carragher commented, also on Sky Sports. "I used to be a bit strict with the way Liverpool conducted transfer deals. But clearly, he is a great upgrade for their current force. The overall picture now will be an attacking trio including Barcola, Florian Wirtz and Isak standing on the same front line. A trio with a total transfer value of more than 400 million USD. And although it cannot be confirmed with certainty whether Liverpool can thus become a top candidate for the Premier League championship or not. No, but Barcola's appearance will bring a new breeze to the whole tournament."

In Liverpool's 2-0 win over Ipswich in round 3 of the Premier League, Barcola made his debut as a substitute in the 64th minute. And as Carragher predicted, coach Iraola placed Barcola in his natural position on the left wing, showing off the acceleration that has made his brand in France in a number of situations.

After the match, the Basque coach commented: "Barcola played well on the field, but we didn't put much of the ball in his hands. The whole team needs to better understand Barcola's movements, because he is always ready to punish the space behind the opponent's defense. However, he is extremely confident when he has the ball at his feet."

Hoang Thong compiled