Liverpool's Deadline Day: Minteh Transfer Hopes Dwindle
Liverpool’s deadline day is rarely quiet, but this one looks set to pass without the late twist Yankuba Minteh’s camp are still chasing.
The Brighton winger’s representatives remain intent on engineering a move to Anfield before the window slams shut at 11pm, with Liverpool long credited with serious interest in the 22-year-old. They are still making calls, still asking the question.
The answer, for now, is no.
Agents pushing, door barely open
Ben Jacobs revealed on talkSPORT that Minteh’s side are “still seeking a move to Liverpool” and are hoping it happens before the deadline. Behind the scenes, the message from the player’s camp is clear: if Liverpool show even a hint of willingness, they will try to force it.
The problem is the numbers and the timing.
Brighton have already turned down two bids from Merseyside, the second worth £60m, and are holding out for £80m for the Gambia international. That fee mirrors what Manchester City offered for Cody Gakpo in the last 24 hours – an £80m proposal Liverpool flatly rejected, according to The Athletic.
In effect, Liverpool would be paying Minteh’s price with Gakpo’s sale. One in, one out. Same money. Very different logic.
Gakpo stays, and the equation changes
Gakpo is staying at Anfield. That single decision strips most of the oxygen from the Minteh story.
The Dutchman has started the season sharply, with a goal and an assist from his first two games. He is fit, in rhythm, and already integrated into Andoni Iraola’s attacking structure. Minteh, by contrast, is sidelined with an injury and not expected back in the short term.
Selling a productive, available forward to fund a move for an injured one at the same price bracket would be a hard sell in any boardroom, never mind one that has prided itself on rational recruitment.
Jacobs made that point plain: Minteh’s camp may hope, but the likelihood of Liverpool acting is slim precisely because Gakpo is going nowhere.
A crowded wing
Even if Liverpool did push the button on Minteh without losing a forward, the squad picture is already congested.
Should the Gambian arrive and no one depart, Iraola would be left with six senior wingers contesting two starting spots. On paper, that looks like a manager’s dream – depth, rotation, options for every competition.
In reality, it is a delicate ecosystem. Minutes have to be managed, egos handled, pathways protected. Adding another high-value winger, currently injured, into that mix on deadline day feels like a luxury move rather than a necessity.
Liverpool, under their current structure, rarely trade in luxuries.
Hope versus reality
Minteh’s representatives will keep pushing until the final hours. That is their job. Deadline day thrives on late calls, revived deals, and the sudden jolt of an unexpected bid.
But this one sits in a different category. Liverpool have turned down £80m for Gakpo. Brighton want £80m for Minteh. The Dutchman is fit and firing; the Gambian is not. The squad is already stacked out wide.
The agents might still be dialling Liverpool’s number, yet all the indicators point the same way: Minteh stays at Brighton, at least until 2026.
Deadline day can still erupt without warning. The question is whether Liverpool, with their forward line settled and their stance on Gakpo crystal clear, really want to light that fuse.
