Liverpool's Long-Term Rebuild: Djylian N'Guessan Deal for 2027
Liverpool are tearing into the final days of the transfer window with one eye firmly fixed on the future, and not just the season in front of them.
While the club waits to officially unveil Bradley Barcola from Paris Saint-Germain, work behind the scenes has already moved several steps ahead. The present is busy. The planning is ruthless.
Italian journalist Fabrizio Romano reports that Liverpool have agreed a deal to sign Djylian N'Guessan from Saint Etienne, with the young striker scheduled to arrive at Anfield in the summer of 2027. The agreement is in place with both club and player, and N'Guessan has been given the green light to undergo a medical.
The fee remains under wraps, but the strategy is crystal clear.
A long game in the market
Liverpool’s recruitment team have been building a layered squad, and this is the latest piece in a carefully staggered puzzle.
They have already struck a €35 million agreement with Genk for goalkeeper Lucca Brughmans, another signing parked until next summer. Now comes N'Guessan, whose arrival is set for two years beyond that, underlining just how far ahead the club are trying to map their attacking line.
At the same time, Liverpool are still hunting another forward for the current squad, with Barcola expected to bolster the wide options once his move from PSG is formally announced. Supporters want first-team firepower now, and the club knows it. But the recruitment department is refusing to sacrifice tomorrow for today.
Who is Djylian N'Guessan?
N'Guessan has only just turned 18, yet he is already being lined up as a future Liverpool striker.
Primarily a centre-forward, he can also operate out wide, a versatility that fits neatly with Liverpool’s modern attacking blueprint. He has made 13 senior appearances for Saint Etienne, several of those coming in the 2024–25 campaign, while most of his minutes have arrived with the club’s B team and under-19 side.
On the international stage, he is capped up to under-20 level for his country, a marker of how highly he is regarded in youth circles.
For now, though, he stays in France. That is no accident. Remaining with Saint Etienne, playing regular football in a familiar environment, may prove far more valuable to his development than an early leap into the intensity of Liverpool’s first team or even their academy setup.
Liverpool get to secure the talent early. N'Guessan gets room to grow.
Future-proofing the forward line
Liverpool’s attack is already stacked with established names, but age profiles and contract cycles never stop ticking. The club’s decision to tie down N'Guessan for 2027 sits alongside the arrivals of Brughmans and the impending Barcola deal as part of a broader reset.
It is not a scattergun spree. It is a staggered rebuild.
Supporters will still demand signings who can impact the starting XI this season, and the pressure on the club to deliver immediate quality will not ease before the window shuts. Yet in the background, Liverpool are quietly laying out a blueprint for the next generation of their front line.
By the time N'Guessan finally walks through the doors at Anfield in 2027, the question will not be why Liverpool moved so early.
It will be whether the teenager from Saint Etienne is ready to lead the next version of their attack.
