Report: Liverpool Tracking Young Australian Star as Barcelona Bid Falls Short
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Lucas Herrington Transfer Interest Shows Why Liverpool Are Watching Closely
Barcelona Interest Underlines Herrington’s Rise
There are certain players who seem to move faster than their own story. Lucas Herrington, still only 18, already appears to be one of them.
AdvertisementAdvertisementThe Australia defender is at the 2026 World Cup, plays in MLS for Colorado Rapids, and has already attracted interest from Barcelona. According to The Athletic, the Spanish giants have had an opening bid rejected, with Colorado not currently in active negotiations and in no rush to sell.
That alone tells its own tale. Clubs do not lightly turn away Barcelona unless they believe there is far more value still to come.
Liverpool Scouts Add Intrigue
For Liverpool, the most interesting detail is that scouts have also been sent to watch Herrington this season. That does not mean a move is close, but it does suggest awareness, and perhaps admiration.
AdvertisementAdvertisement“He is an exceptionally talented young man with the world at his feet,” Rapids president Pádraig Smith told Yahoo! Sports. “When our scouts identified him, and we began the recruitment process, we knew he had a high ceiling.”
That ceiling now looks higher with every passing week.
Herrington ranks fourth in MLS for clearances, sixth for shots blocked and 21st for aerials won. Those numbers matter because they point to a defender already comfortable with the physical side of senior football.
Composure Beyond His Years
What makes Herrington particularly appealing is not merely his defending. It is the style of it. He plays in a front-footed system, one that asks him to defend space, pass through pressure and help start attacks.
AdvertisementAdvertisement“He’s super composed,” teammate and former Premier League centre-back Rob Holding said this season. “Super relaxed, on the ball, under pressure. He’s a really good player. He just keeps getting better and better each week.”
Photo: IMAGO
That is the language elite clubs listen for. Centre-backs are no longer judged only by tackles, headers and bravery. They must think quickly, carry the ball calmly and defend large spaces behind an aggressive team.
World Cup Stage Could Accelerate Everything
Herrington’s possible World Cup debut against the United States could change the speed of this entire conversation. A strong tournament often turns potential into urgency.
Colorado have already shown they can develop and sell well, with Moise Bombito moving to Nice for an MLS-record centre-back fee. Herrington, younger and already watched by Barcelona and Liverpool, could push that record further.
For Liverpool, this feels like the type of profile worth monitoring carefully. Young, athletic, composed, technically secure and already performing in senior football, Herrington may not remain in MLS for long.
Our View – Anfield Index Analysis
From a Liverpool fan’s perspective, this is exactly the kind of story that should raise interest without creating hysteria.
Herrington is not yet a guaranteed Premier League starter, and no one should pretend otherwise. He is 18, playing in MLS and still waiting for a true defining moment on the international stage. But that is also why the timing matters.
AdvertisementAdvertisementLiverpool have often been at their best when spotting the curve before everyone else accepts it. If Barcelona are already bidding and Colorado are confident enough to say no, then Herrington’s market is moving.
What stands out is the blend. He is producing defensive numbers, he has the athletic tools, and he is being praised for calmness on the ball by Rob Holding, someone who knows Premier League standards.
That matters for Liverpool because any centre-back arriving under a modern, aggressive system must defend space as much as the penalty area. It is not enough to look powerful. You have to look comfortable when the pitch is stretched and the margin for error is brutal.
Herrington feels like a name Liverpool supporters should remember. Maybe this summer is too soon. Maybe the fee rises beyond sensible value. But if the club are scouting him now, they are right to do so.
Badenoch blasts 'moaning' female Labour MPs over Burnham jobs 'quota'
Kemi Badenoch has told Labour women to earn a job in Andy Burnham's Cabinet instead of demanding they are handed jobs because of their gender.
The Tory leader lashed out today amid reports that female MPs are demanding the de-facto new prime minister introduce a 50:50 gender split 'quota' in his government.
Amid reports that former foreign secretary David Miliband is being lined up to return to the role, possibly with his brother Ed as Chancellor, one female minister also complained that Burnham could not have 'more Milibands than women' in the top posts.
But in a scathing article in the Times today Mrs Badenoch told them to 'stop moaning' and get chosen on merit instead of retreating into 'more of the failed identity politics that is holding back our country'.
'There are many, many reasons why you shouldn't have any Milibands in the cabinet,' she said.
'But complaining that the boys haven't given them the right jobs or that the boys are taking all the jobs, just shows that Labour's women still don't get it.'
The idea of quotas was also attacked by Baroness Jacqui Smith, Labour's Skills Minister.
Asked by Times Radio if Mr Burnham should reserve jobs for women, she said: 'No, I think what Andy Burnham should be doing is building the very best team around him to change this country.'
A letter written by the Women's Parliamentary Labour Party has called on Mr Burnham to ensure a 50:50 split between men and women in government jobs
Amid reports that former foreign secretary David Miliband (above, right, in 2010) is being lined up to return to the role, possibly with his brother Ed as Chancellor, one female minister complained that Burnham could not have 'more Milibands than women' in the top posts
But Mrs Badenoch told them to pipe down and get chosen on merit instead of retreating into 'more of the failed identity politics that is holding back our country'
A letter written by the Women's Parliamentary Labour Party and seen by the BBC has called on Mr Burnham to ensure a 50:50 split between men and women in government jobs after he succeeds Sir Keir Starmer.
'We are asking you to demonstrate this change from day one and address the toxicity and misogyny within our own party and government,' it said.
Labour has never had a female leader, while the Conservatives have had three, and Mrs Badenoch urged the government to follow its meritocratic example.
'If you run a meritocracy, then you do not have to worry about jobs for the boys,' she wrote.
'Every woman who is a Conservative MP, every woman who has ever won the leadership, has had to fight to get where she is.
'By contrast, Labour women are demanding guarantees from Burnham. But the truth is he doesn't have to give any guarantees.
'If none of Labour's women are prepared to get their hands dirty and challenge him for the leadership, their demands are toothless.'
'In fact, it's quite revealing that the women's parliamentary Labour Party has written to Burnham asking him to commit himself to at least 50 per cent female ministers.
'This has nothing to do with meritocracy. It is yet more of the failed identity politics that is holding back our country.'
