Liverpool FC journalist Neil Jones has provided some intriguing new insight into the situation regarding Mohamed Salah ahead of the summer transfer window.
Speaking exclusively to CaughtOffside for his Daily Briefing column, Jones suggested that there might be reason to think Salah will have had a bit of a change of heart over a potential move to the Saudi Pro League at the end of this season.
The Egypt international was strongly linked with Saudi clubs in the summer and it’s since seemed like the saga might not be over, though Jones has made it clear just how ambitious the 31-year-old is, and how that might affect his thinking.
Salah is one of the best players in the world and a hugely important part of this Liverpool side, so it may be that he’ll be more tempted to stay and cement his status as a club legend, as well as one of the top players at the highest level in Europe.
For now, Jones says he can’t see LFC signing short-term cover for Salah while he’s away for AFCON this winter, but he also suggested that the last few months might also have persuaded him against becoming the latest big name to sign up for the Saudi Pro League project.
“I’d be amazed if Liverpool looked to bring in a forward in this window. Of course Mohamed Salah is a miss, as is Wataru Endo in midfield, but they still have four high quality attacking options available, with the possibility of using Harvey Elliott and/or Dominik Szoboszlai off the right flank too, if required,” Jones said.
“Liverpool, generally, do not go for such short-termism in their recruitment – and when they have done (Arthur Melo, for example) it tends not to work. They think about the bigger picture, not plugging two-week gaps.
“It’s no surprise to see tons of players linked with Liverpool. It’s the price on the ticket for such a big club, that their name is thrown in whenever a prospect emerges or talk of a transfer starts to ramp up.
“Ignoring the specific names for a second, the pertinent question is whether Liverpool will look to sign a forward player in the summer, and whether they need to. If no-one was to leave the club, I’d edge towards ‘no’, but of course if we were to see another summer like the last one, where previously-untouchable players were lured away by the Saudi Pro League, then everything becomes possible.
“Mo Salah’s future, in particular, is one to watch. My personal opinion is that the last six months must have shown him the dangers of moving to Saudi Arabia at this stage of his career, and that he must surely be thinking about the idea of extending his stay in Europe, and at Liverpool. I can’t speak to Salah’s mindset, but I know he’s an ambitious character and that the best place to fulfil those ambitions is not in Riyadh or Jeddah.
“If Salah were to stay, and assuming none of Cody Gakpo, Darwin Nunez, Luis Diaz or Diogo Jota were to be sold, I’d say Liverpool are in pretty good shape, attack-wise. The one thing they perhaps lack is a player of sheer speed who can play from the right, and so I understand why links with players such as Neto and Bakayoko persist, but I’m not sure the Reds would be spending £40m+ on those, unless there were players heading out of the door.”