Liverpool are considering moves for two Ligue 1 midfielders this summer as the club’s recruitment team maps out an engine room rebuild ahead of what promises to be a transformative transfer window.
Monaco’s Lamine Camara and RC Lens’s Mamadou Sangare have both been watched closely by FSG’s scouting operation, according to journalist David Lynch, with Adam Wharton of Crystal Palace confirmed as the leading target in the group.
Sangare’s numbers make for impressive reading for a 23-year-old playing in what many still consider a second-tier European league. He leads all Ligue 1 midfielders for possessions won this season with 194, ranks first for ground duels won with 154, and tops the chart for possessions won in the final third per 90 minutes. Those metrics align precisely with what Arne Slot’s system demands from the No. 6 position, a role that has been filled only partially effectively since Wataru Endo suffered injury and Alexis Mac Allister’s future has grown uncertain.
Dr Phil Barter, speaking to Anfield Index, was direct about the urgency: “If you wait another season, the price goes up significantly. This is a moment where you either act or lose the advantage.” Sangare’s estimated market value sits between £35 million and £40 million, a figure that represents genuine value for a player whose statistical profile would command double that in the Premier League market after another strong season.
Camara, 22, offers a different profile at Monaco. The Senegal international has been central to the Principality club’s midfield under conditions that have seen Paul Pogba miss most of the season through injury. He brings athleticism, box-to-box capability and physical presence in challenges, winning 6.7 duels per 90 minutes in Ligue 1. The comparison case is Liverpool’s historical success in recruiting from the French top flight, which has delivered players like Naby Keita and Moussa Sissoko’s opposite, though the analogy is imperfect.
Liverpool are also weighing up Baleba at Brighton, though the £80 million starting price has effectively frozen any meaningful talks. The club faces a summer that could involve outgoings including Mohamed Salah and potentially Alisson, meaning recruitment revenue will likely be reinvested rather than funded through net new expenditure. Wharton remains the clearest and most concrete target at this stage, while Camara and Sangare represent the more left-field options that Liverpool’s scouting culture has historically done well to identify and pursue before prices become prohibitive.
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