Barcola: I am not Mohamed Salah, and this is why I left Paris Saint-Germain

The French star declares: You haven't seen the best version of me yet

Liverpool winger Bradley Barcola has lifted the lid on his exit from Paris Saint-Germain and why he chose the Anfield fortress. The France international also addressed the weight of his transfer fee and the task of following Egyptian star Mohamed Salah, insisting he is yet to hit his best level with the English side.

Barcola swapped PSG for Liverpool in the last summer window, a huge deal worth 145 million euros including bonuses.

Speaking to "Sky Sports", the French winger conceded he has not yet reached the heights he is chasing, despite the upturn in his recent displays. "I don't think I've reached my best level yet," he said. "You haven't seen the best version of me, and we are also working with my team-mates so they can benefit more from my strengths".

"I think that once we really develop the understanding between us, things will improve a lot," he added. "I feel there is continuous progress, as the players have started to understand my style of play better, and I think things are going very well".

On the size of his fee and the pressure of replacing Salah, who left Liverpool last summer, Barcola made clear he feels no obligation to fill the Egyptian's boots. "In the first place, I did not set the value of my transfer deal, and so this matter is not a problem for me," he said.

The comparison with Salah drew a firm response. "Mohamed Salah is a legend here, in fact a very great legend," he said. "He has given great things to this club, and I hold him in enormous respect, but I don't feel any pressure because of that".

"I am not Mohamed Salah, and I will try to give everything I can to help the club and make my own mark in its history," he continued. "I don't feel any pressure relating to this matter".

Why walk away from PSG after all that success? For Barcola, the timing was simply right. "For me, it was the right time to leave Paris Saint-Germain," he said. "I spent wonderful years there and won a huge number of titles, but the time to leave had come".

The goodbye stung. "It was very difficult, because the atmosphere there was like a family," he explained. "We built something very special together, and it was hard to say goodbye to my team-mates, but in the end that is the nature of football".

"When a club the size of Liverpool contacts you, that is a wonderful thing," he went on. "I had no doubts, and I knew I had to move here. I am happy to be with the team, and I hope things go well for Paris Saint-Germain".

Barcola also turned to Liverpool's recent 1-0 defeat to Arsenal. The result, he insisted, changes nothing about the season's targets, though he called for sharper collective play and more control of the tempo.

"I don't think our objectives during the season have changed," he said. "I see that we should have put in a better performance in a match like this, as we had chances to score, and even to win the match".

"We need to work on controlling the match more and playing better football," he added. "Often, when we face matches of this level, we resort to long balls, but I think we should try to keep the ball on the ground more, because we have players with the quality needed to carry that out".

"We were feeling great disappointment after the match, but we know what we must improve, and we will not give up," he concluded. "We know that the other teams will drop points too, and so we must keep our level consistent until the end of the season".