Liverpool learn if Ismaila Sarr deal can be resurrected in January as Palace boss reveals player’s hurt at blocked move

Crystal Palace boss Pierre Sage has revealed that Ismaila Sarr is in a delicate place after the Eagles blocked an offer from Liverpool late in the transfer window, and having revealed whether a January move to Anfield could still be on the cards.

Liverpool, having splashed out a whopping £123m package to bring in Bradley Barcola from PSG on the penultimate day of the window, were in the market for a second wing addition, having being priced out of the race to sign Yankuba Minteh.

But after launching a £50m offer to sign Palace star Sarr, who had impressed with a strong World Cup off the back of a season which saw him named Player of the Tournament in the Eagles’ successful UEFA Conference League campaign, Liverpool were quickly sent packing, having been told the player was not for sale that late in the window.

Now, with the player’s Anfield dream in tatters, Palace have been left to pick up the pieces, and Sage has admitted the player needs time to recover.

“He needs to recover because he is, and always was, injured. He’s still our player, and we are happy with that,” Sage told Sky Sports News.

“He has to digest [the disappointment] for sure, because it’s a dream for a lot of players to play for this kind of club.

“In the end, he is still with us; there was an opportunity, but in the end it does not work [the transfer], so if he wants to continue [attracting that level of attention] he needs to give a good season with us, to perform with us, to score a lot of goals as he did last year.

“But now we know – and now you know – that he needs time.”

Asked if the club will reassess his situation and potential Liverpool interest in January, or if he could be allowed to leave next summer, Sage added: “I don’t think he will leave, because now all the clubs are in the season [and have squads finalised].

“We have a decision to make with the European list [registration of players for the Europa League], and he will speak about that later. It is difficult to decide the team when you are in these competitions.”

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Sage was also asked about the media outburst by the player’s agent earlier this week after he posted a fiery statement condemning Palace for blocking a £50m move to Liverpool.

“I don’t really agree with this position,” Sage replied. “I just want to say that the club and the people here are respectful, and we want the best for our club and players.”

Liverpool had seen Sarr as a possible fix for their right-wing issues, with all of new signings, Barcola and Victor Munoz, Cody Gakpo, and Rio Ngumoh, more comfortable operating as inverted left-sided wingers.

Addressing those apparent issues, though not commenting directly on the miss for Sarr, Liverpool boss Andoni Iraola insists he is happy with his options.

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Indeed, Iraola insists he has no fears over the balance of his squad after essentially failing to replace Mohamed Salah on the right wing, and he stated: “We prefer at the end to have the best players rather than players specifically for that position.

“I’m used to other teams to demand wingers to play on both sides. We’ve played with Rio and Cody now on the right; probably most of the wingers play on the left, but I’ve seen them good on the right.

“Bradley is very open and can play on the left or the right. At Lyon, he sometimes played on the right. It depends on the match-ups, but I’m happy with the wingers we have, and we are going to be able to cope on the right.”

However, in a note of caution, he insisted: “We can’t put pressure on the players to perform because of their price, because we’ve seen how much players have cost at other teams this summer. Once he is our player, he is our player!”