Ibrahim Mbaye Rejects Villa Move for Liverpool or City

Aston Villa have been pushed to the fringes of one of the window’s more intriguing winger sagas, with PSG forward Ibrahim Mbaye rejecting a move to Villa Park as his camp angles for Liverpool or Manchester City instead.

The 18-year-old, already a 15-cap Senegal international, had been in talks with Villa over a permanent switch. Those conversations have cooled sharply. His representatives now believe his next step must be at a club that lives in the latter stages of the Champions League, not one still fighting to establish itself in that bracket.

So the message has gone out: Mbaye is available. And Liverpool and City have been invited to the table.

Liverpool’s wide rebuild gathers pace

At Anfield, the timing is striking. Liverpool are already committed to a major reshaping of their attacking flanks.

Mohamed Salah has gone. Federico Chiesa, by all accounts, has a genuine chance of following him out of the door. Strip those two away and the wide options suddenly look thin: Rio Ngumoha, Cody Gakpo and Victor Munoz, the latter already secured this summer, form the current core.

That is why Bradley Barcola sits at the very top of Liverpool’s list. The France international is the headline target for the wings, and Liverpool are prepared to push hard to land him before the window closes. Barcola is keen on the move. The problem is Paris.

PSG have planted their flag at a staggering €170m (£145m) valuation. Liverpool and Barcola’s camp will try to drag that number down, but it is still a negotiation with one of the toughest sellers in Europe.

Even so, there is a real scenario in which Liverpool bring in two wingers. Barcola as the marquee arrival. Mbaye as the high-upside addition behind him. That, though, would almost certainly require another departure from the current group, with Chiesa the obvious candidate.

Mbaye squeezed by PSG’s attacking wealth

Mbaye’s situation in Paris explains the current push for a move.

Last season he managed 31 appearances for PSG, an impressive tally for a teenager in a squad stacked with attacking talent. Luis Enrique could rotate through Ousmane Dembele, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, Desire Doue and Barcola across the frontline. Goncalo Ramos and Lee Kang-In were also available before their respective sales to AC Milan and Atletico Madrid.

Mbaye, right-footed and primarily used on the right flank in the 2025/26 campaign, still carved out minutes in that environment. That alone underlines his potential.

But the pathway is narrowing again. PSG plan to bring Maghnes Akliouche in from Monaco, adding yet another body into an already congested set of wide and attacking roles. According to TEAMtalk, Mbaye’s representatives now see a departure as the best option for his development and long-term career.

A move to Villa would have offered him a prominent role and a Premier League platform. He has chosen ambition of a different kind.

Liverpool and City interest – but not at the top of the list

Graeme Bailey reports that both Liverpool and Manchester City hold genuine interest in Mbaye. Neither, though, view him as a primary target.

For Liverpool, Barcola remains the true prize. Any move for Mbaye would be in addition to, not instead of, the Frenchman. That turns the teenager into a strategic play: a chance to secure a gifted winger early in his rise, while reshaping the squad around a blockbuster signing.

City’s stance is similar. Their recruitment department is always alert to elite young talent, especially those already hardened by Champions League-level environments. Mbaye fits that profile, but he is not currently driving their plans.

The player’s camp, however, has made its preference clear. The next step must be at a club that regularly competes for the biggest trophies. Villa, despite their progress, cannot yet offer that guarantee. Liverpool and City can.

So Mbaye waits, his future hanging on two clubs who have bigger fires to fight in the market. If Barcola lands at Anfield and another winger leaves, the door could swing open. If City decide to refresh their wide options, his name is already in the conversation.

For now, the teenager who broke through in one of Europe’s most competitive attacking squads has drawn his own line: no to Villa, yes to the elite. The question is whether Liverpool or City decide his timing matches theirs.