da dobrowin： Mohamed Salah continues to generate transfer talk at Liverpool, and Jan Molby believes a deal may have already been struck with Saudi suitors.
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Anfield talisman linked with move in 2023Big money offers said to have been tabledHeading towards final year of contractWHAT HAPPENED?
The Egyptian superstar has been at Anfield since 2017. He has won Premier League, Champions League, FA Cup, Carabao Cup, UEFA Super and FIFA Club World Cup honours during his time on Merseyside – scoring over 200 goals in the process. He is currently unavailable to Jurgen Klopp, having headed off on AFCON duty before picking up an untimely injury, and it may be that the Reds have to get used to not having Salah around.
AdvertisementGettyWHAT MOLBY SAID ABOUT SALAH
Liverpool legend Molby, speaking on behalf of , told GOAL when asked if a long goodbye is being taken in by Salah alongside his German coach – who has already announced that he will be moving on – with interest from Saudi Arabia first emerging in the summer of 2023: “Great question. I think a lot of people feel because of what happened in the summer, that it almost felt Liverpool said to the Saudi clubs: ‘Don’t put us in a situation where we don’t have time to replace him’. Obviously it probably would be something that would tempt Mohamed Salah, to go to Saudi Arabia. It almost feels like a deal might have been struck – let’s step back and look at it again in the summer of 2024. Of course it depends on Mohamed Salah and how he views the rest of his career.
"He could stay at Liverpool and become an even bigger legend and produce even more impressive numbers, or he could go somewhere else that almost feels like home and show people there what he is capable of. It will be interesting to see. Whether you think Mohamed Salah is a great player or not, he has tremendous stats. He is always available to play, scores goals, makes assists. It will be an interesting one. It will require a big number to take him away from Anfield."
THE BIGGER PICTURE
Those numbers were around the £200 million ($255m) mark last summer. Said figures will come down a bit as Salah approaches the final year of his contract at Liverpool, but they may prove impossible to turn down for a player that would become a free agent in 2025. Molby added: “If they are the numbers, and with what he has got left on his contract, it will probably make sense. Also to take that next step. We have seen how successfully they have used money in the past – the [Philippe] Coutinho money and what that did to the squad. They might be able to do something similar should they decide that the offer is too good to turn down.”
GettyDID YOU KNOW?
If Liverpool were to cash in, then they would have some serious cash burning a hole in their pocket. Quizzed on whether the Reds would look to blow that war chest on another ready-made superstar or spread the costs and reinforce various areas of their squad, Molby said of recruitment business: “It’s not something that Liverpool normally do. If you look at players that have turned out to be some of the greatest in the club’s history, they haven’t been bought at superstars – Liverpool turned them into superstars. I would be more likely to think that Liverpool might go for two or three different positions should they get 150-plus. Liverpool have, for six or seven years, been buying really well. You have to suggest that you wouldn’t be overly concerned. You probably wouldn’t find another Mohamed Salah, but you can find somebody else and change the way you play slightly.”