Iraola’s new Semenyo: Liverpool ready to seal mega £87m transfer ASAP

Arne Slot has now left Liverpool, but the show must go on.

The Dutch coach penned a heartfelt letter in the Liverpool ECHO, addressing the fanbase, speaking of success and unity and just how Liverpool is different to other clubs out there.

It may have been a draining, near disastrous year for the Reds, but Slot gets it, and he departs having delivered a Premier League title in his first year, swiftly revered internally and from afar as he ran in Jurgen Klopp’s boots.

Thank you, Slot, but the show must go on, and we can’t ignore just how bad it got, toxicity levels spiking and fan disillusionment effectively condemning him.

Now, FSG cannot afford to take a wrong turn, and the need for forwards to set managerless Liverpool back on track has intensified.

Liverpool want new forward ASAP

Mohamed Salah has left Liverpool this summer, and Hugo Ekitike‘s long-term injury underlines the importance of signing new forwards for the coach set to replace Slot in the Anfield dugout.

It looks like Andoni Iraola will be that man. The Spaniard is the firm favourite to succeed Slot this month, having left his Bournemouth post at the end of his contract. Formal talks will open this week.

According to TEAMtalk, Liverpool are now going to push for a deal with RB Leipzig for in-demand winger Yan Diomande, regardless of the outcome of the Iraola saga. FSG want to get the move finished up quickly, with the Reds aware that missing out this summer could complicate any future bids.

The £87m-rated Diomande, 19, is also being chased by Paris Saint-Germain, but Liverpool could promise him an instant route into their starting line-up, an athletic and physical and potent Salah replacement on the right.

Iraola could be the perfect coach to guide Diomande onto a world-class platform, with the Ivory Coast star bearing similarities with Manchester City star Antoine Semenyo, forged in the furnace of Iraola’s Bournemouth project.

Why Diomande can be Iraola’s new Semenyo

Liverpool wanted Semenyo before he completed a £65m move to Manchester in January, ending rife speculation regarding his future at the club.

Biding their time may belatedly pay off, with Diomande boasting even more potential than the Ghana international, hailed by The Redmen TV’s Daniel Clubbe as having “the finishing ability of Sadio Mane“.

Described as a “generational talent” by journalist Bence Bocsák, Diomande posted 13 goals and ten assists across all competitions for Leipzig this term. It’s worth remembering that he spent much of last season in Spanish side Leganes’ reserves.

The gains he has made in such short time are frankly absurd, convincing FSG and PSG, Europe’s pre-eminent team right now, that he is worth bringing over.

Iraola would hit the jackpot by meeting him at Anfield, with Diomande certainly showing that he has many similar attributes to Semenyo, a 26-year-old attacker who excelled throughout the 2025/26 season and secured two domestic trophies after joining City in January.

It’s important that Liverpool do not attempt to replace Salah with a like-for-like replacement this summer. The Egyptian King is one of a kind, and pushing for a similar profile – otherworldly goalscoring, conservative explosiveness – would not be the order of the day.

Moreover, Iraola brings intensity and high-octane forward play to his teams, and Salah in his current iteration would not stay afloat. Diomande would, though, so quick and powerful when on the ball. He works tirelessly from a defensive standpoint, bearing all the facets that have seen Semenyo enter the ascendancy and stay there over the past couple of years in the Premier League.

Diomande is young and inexperienced, but his success in the Bundesliga has been underpinned by a strength and application on the ball that will serve him well in the Premier League.

Working under Iraola, he’ll have to put in 110%, and with the right help, he could grow into the Basque manager’s new Semenyo, maybe even eclipsing him.