Liverpool could be set to feel the effects of the only thing that went wrong for them in the summer transfer window – Marc Guehi’s collapsed move from Crystal Palace. The defender was ready to sign for the Reds on deadline day before his club brought the move to a halt.
It forces Liverpool into having to play a waiting game, which they welcomed as a possibility earlier this summer. However, a rapidly changing market may mean a free transfer becomes that much more difficult looking ahead to 2026.
Liverpool’s failure to sign Guehi on deadline day was really no fault of their own, however it now looks like it could become a costly outcome.
That is because The Mirror report that the Reds could now find themselves in a battle against five European rivals for when the defender becomes a free agent, all who will have the advantage.
FIFA rules dictate foreign clubs are allowed to negotiate a pre-contract agreement with Guehi directly from January 1, 2026, whereas Liverpool would be forced to wait until his Palace contract’s expiry six months afterwards.
The clubs in question ready to rival Liverpool are said to be Bayern Munich, Barcelona, Inter Milan, Juventus, and Real Madrid.
One of those above five rivals, Real , have also been linked with taking Ibrahima Konate from Liverpool should the central defender not agree a new contract to stay beyond next summer.
Therefore this has become a dangerous period for the Reds, after which they could emerge with neither he nor Guehi.
The Daily Mail’s latest update explains that Liverpool remain in talks with Konate and his representatives though with no outcome in the ten months since contract negotiations started, the Frenchman’s future hangs in the balance.
The hope is to avoid another contract debacle after the three last season.
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