Sometimes a transfer story only becomes truly interesting when you look back at what could have happened.
And this might be one of those stories.
According to reports from James Pearce, Greg Evans and Oliver Kay, Richard Hughes urged Liverpool’s hierarchy to sign Antoine Semenyo for around £60 million in January, viewing the Bournemouth forward as a ready-made replacement for Mohamed Salah.
Liverpool ultimately didn’t make the move.
Semenyo then joined Manchester City.
And now, with Liverpool having spent heavily rebuilding their attack, it is fair to ask:
Did Liverpool miss a huge opportunity?
Hughes reportedly wanted Semenyo
The most interesting part of this story is that Semenyo wasn’t simply a name on a scouting list.
Hughes already knew him extremely well from his time at Bournemouth.
He understood his qualities, his character and his ability to perform in the Premier League.
The reported £60m price tag was significant, but Hughes apparently believed Semenyo was good enough to step straight into Liverpool’s attack and eventually replace Salah.
That is quite a recommendation.
And considering what has happened since, it is impossible not to wonder whether Liverpool should have listened.
Salah’s future complicated everything
There was a major problem, though.
Liverpool didn’t know exactly what was going to happen with Salah.
His future wasn’t resolved until March.
By then, Semenyo had already joined Manchester City.
That timing is crucial.
Liverpool were effectively being asked to spend £60m on a player who was being considered as a replacement for Salah before they had complete certainty over whether Salah would actually leave.
From a financial perspective, that’s a difficult decision.
What if Salah stayed?
Liverpool would suddenly have invested £60m in another attacker without necessarily having an obvious starting position for him.
The club chose to wait.
And Manchester City took advantage.
Then City got him
This is the part that will probably annoy Liverpool supporters.
Semenyo didn’t disappear.
He didn’t go abroad.
He didn’t move to some obscure league.
He joined Manchester City.
And according to the reporting around Hughes’ recommendation, City eventually secured him for around £64 million.
He then hit the ground running.
Suddenly, the £60m Liverpool were reluctant to spend doesn’t look quite so outrageous.
That’s football.
Sometimes you make the decision based on the information available at the time.
And sometimes the player you decided not to buy goes somewhere else and proves exactly why your recruitment department wanted him.
Could Semenyo have been Salah’s replacement?
This is where I think the story becomes fascinating.
Nobody could realistically replace Mohamed Salah one-for-one.
Salah is one of the greatest players in Liverpool’s modern history.
But Liverpool didn’t necessarily need another Salah.
They needed someone capable of providing goals, pace, physicality and attacking threat from the wide areas.
Semenyo certainly has those qualities.
He is powerful, direct and capable of carrying the ball at defenders.
He also already knew the Premier League.
That last point is important.
Liverpool have invested heavily in players coming into a completely new environment.
Semenyo would have required far less adaptation.
And look at Liverpool’s attack now
Liverpool eventually brought in Bradley Barcola, while Alexander Isak and Florian Wirtz were already part of the attacking rebuild.
Barcola looks an extremely exciting addition.
But the Semenyo story still raises an interesting question.
Could Liverpool have saved themselves a huge amount of money by acting in January?
That isn’t necessarily fair because circumstances were different.
Liverpool didn’t know exactly what would happen with Salah.
They also couldn’t know how the summer transfer market would develop.
But that’s precisely why recruitment decisions are so difficult.
You have to anticipate what the squad will need before everybody else sees it.
Was £60m too much?
At the time, perhaps Liverpool’s hierarchy believed it was.
But compare that reported valuation with the eventual fee City paid.
The difference was relatively small.
And Liverpool now find themselves in a situation where they have had to spend enormous sums rebuilding their attack.
Semenyo could potentially have been one of those pieces already in place.
That doesn’t mean Liverpool were wrong to wait.
It does mean the decision deserves scrutiny.
Richard Hughes may feel frustrated
This is probably the biggest takeaway for me.
If Hughes genuinely pushed Liverpool to sign Semenyo as Salah’s replacement, then he clearly identified the problem early.
He knew Salah’s future was becoming uncertain.
He knew Semenyo was Premier League ready.
And he believed £60m represented value.
The decision ultimately wasn’t made.
Now Semenyo is at Manchester City.
And Liverpool have lost the man who originally wanted him.
That makes the story even more intriguing.
Another transfer that got away?
Liverpool supporters have become used to looking back at players who were available and wondering what might have happened.
But Semenyo feels different.
He wasn’t simply a youngster Liverpool might have developed.
He was reportedly viewed by the sporting director as someone who could immediately help replace Salah.
That’s a very different situation.
And when you see him succeeding at Manchester City, you can’t help but wonder.
What if Liverpool had said yes?
What if they’d spent the £60m?
What if Salah had still left in the summer?
Liverpool might have entered the new season with Semenyo already integrated into the squad.
Instead, they waited.
City moved.
And now Semenyo is wearing sky blue.
My verdict
I don’t think Liverpool should be condemned for refusing to spend £60m in January.
There was a legitimate uncertainty over Salah’s future, and committing that kind of money before knowing whether he would stay was a huge decision.
But I do think this is one that Liverpool may eventually look back on with regret.
Richard Hughes reportedly saw Semenyo as a ready-made Salah replacement.
He wanted Liverpool to move.
Liverpool didn’t.
Manchester City did.
And Semenyo has started life at City impressively.
Sometimes the most painful transfer stories aren’t the players you tried and failed to sign.
They’re the players you could have signed — but decided not to.
Antoine Semenyo might just be one of those for Liverpool.
Jamie (The Kopite View)
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