Liverpool Faces Familiar Challenge in Pursuit of Olise
Liverpool’s search for the next great wide forward is starting to feel like a story they have read before.
The club went into the summer prepared to reshape the forward line. There was serious late-window work on alternatives such as Yankuba Minteh and Ismaila Sarr, and Cody Gakpo’s future was right at the heart of it. Had one of those deals landed, Gakpo was on course to join Manchester City. The move fell apart. His form since has only muddied the waters for Andoni Iraola.
So Liverpool pause. For now.
They can lean into what they already have, banking on internal solutions and Gakpo’s resurgence, or they can circle back to the market in 2027 if the right profile appears. On any such list, one name jumps off the page: Michael Olise.
Bayern tighten their grip
Olise has long been the kind of forward elite Premier League clubs covet. Creativity, control, end product in the final third – he ticks the boxes that matter at the very top. If Liverpool do return to the wide-forward market in a serious way, he is exactly the type they would naturally gravitate towards.
But Bayern Munich are moving first.
According to Fabrizio Romano, the German champions are already working to shut the door. “Bayern's next mission after extending Harry Kane's contract, will also be to extend the contract of Michael Olise, get a new deal done,” he reported. This is not a sentimental reward for a talented player. It is a strategic play to block the path for anyone else.
Bayern have made contract control a central pillar of their squad building, and Olise sits high on that agenda. Romano added that they had already opened conversations last summer, making it clear to Olise and his camp that a new deal was the plan. The full focus recently sat on Kane, but Olise has never slipped from view.
Better salary. Longer contract. A clear message: stay.
The key detail is that Bayern are not under pressure. Olise is already secured on a long-term agreement. This is about reinforcing their position while rival clubs are still sketching out their plans. Liverpool know this pattern well. Once Bayern decide a player is central to their future, prising him away becomes an exercise in fantasy – difficult, expensive, usually unrealistic.
Real Madrid lurking in the background
As if Bayern’s stance was not enough, Real Madrid’s interest only adds another layer.
Romano has also outlined how highly Florentino Perez and Real Madrid rate Olise. He says they had him “very high in their thoughts” during the summer and even made a bid. Bayern’s response was blunt: no exit, no discussion, no opening.
Now the intention in Munich is to go a step further. By agreeing a new contract, they want to stop all future attempts before they even start.
For Liverpool, the message could not be clearer. Admiration does not equal availability. If Bayern have already turned away Real Madrid and are now preparing improved terms, the chances of a future crack in the door look slim.
That reality may push Liverpool back towards the opportunistic end of the market – the Minteh and Sarr type of moves – rather than the polished, premium names who shape title races. Especially if Gakpo keeps producing and strengthens his claim for a longer stay under Iraola.
Right now, Olise feels less like a live possibility and more like a luxury name on an internal shortlist, one to monitor rather than one to move for.
Liverpool’s timing problem
This is the kind of development that drains belief in a long-term plan.
Olise is exactly the calibre of wide forward Liverpool should be targeting. Hearing that Bayern are already working to lock him down makes it feel like another elite option drifting out of reach before any serious move can even form. The need for a top-level wide attacker has been parked, not solved.
There is an uncomfortable pattern here. Minteh and Sarr were explored. Gakpo was almost sacrificed to make room. Then the plan shifted. Now his improved form offers a convenient reason to wait, yet building strategy around short-term upturns can be dangerous when bigger structural questions remain.
If the club truly believes another wide attacker is required, waiting for the perfect window can be a trap. Top names rarely sit still. They sign new deals, their prices rise, and the market hardens around them.
Olise would always have been expensive. Players who decide games usually are. But Liverpool need match-winners, not just extra bodies. When Bayern and Real Madrid are the dominant forces around a player, that is usually a clear indicator of his level.
Miss out on that bracket too often and the effect eventually shows on the pitch.
Bayern are moving early. Real Madrid have already tested the water. Liverpool, once again, are watching an A-list option being secured elsewhere. The question now is whether they are prepared to keep chasing second-choice solutions while the game’s sharpest operators lock in the very best.
