There are exceptions to every rule, so why shouldn’t Mo Salah, yet again, be the exception to Liverpool’s strict wage policy?
The Egyptian admittedly earns significantly higher compared to the Reds’ current top earners (reportedly in excess of £350,000-a-week). Virgil van Dijk, second on that list, is allegedly on £220,000-a-week (according to Capology.
When you’ve got a player like the Egyptian King, however, constantly breaking records left, right and centre, not to mention defying the inevitable lure of Father Time, it’s difficult to say, ‘no’.
Now, the Mirror reports that FSG and Salah’s camp have compromised over a new contract extension that would keep him at Anfield for a further two years.
This follows a surprise claim from BeINSports analyst Haytham Farouk on a contract renewal.
Mo Salah contract extension could be coming
Red Sox and principal Liverpool owner John W Henry with retired Boston Red Sox second baseman Dustin Pedroia.
(Photo By Winslow Townson/Getty Images)
Intriguingly, the report in question makes clear that money was never at the root of the issue for Liverpool’s owners.
Rather, length of contract was the key battleground, with Fenway understandably reluctant to hand out long-term contracts to players in their 30s.
With Salah set to turn 33 in the summer of 2025, a new two-year deal would keep him at the club until he’s 35. Even for someone in such impeccable shape as the right winger, decline is a serious risk factor.
Hence why FSG were initially only prepared to shake on a one-year extension, whilst Ramy Abbas Issa, Mo’s agent, held out for a three-year contract renewal.
What was the tipping point? A world-class display against Newcastle United, with the footballer directly involved in all three Liverpool goals, certainly hasn’t impeded discussions judging by the American group’s show of flexibility.
Salah is in the mould of a Messi or Ronaldo
These kinds of players don’t come around often – by that, we’re specifically talking about their longevity at the highest level of the game.
Whilst we’d still put Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo ahead of Mo Salah for overall quality, the Egyptian looks like he could very much hold his own physically.
On the march to 33, the No.11 certainly doesn’t look like he’s in any hurry to slow down, which bodes well for Liverpool.