Mohamed Salah will leave Liverpool on a free transfer at the end of the season if he does not sign a new contract
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Liverpool talisman Mohamed Salah (left) would not be a good signing for Chelsea, according to William Gallas (right)
Liverpool talisman Mohamed Salah (left) would not be a good signing for Chelsea, according to William Gallas (right)
It doesn't bear thinking about. But this could be Mohamed Salah's last season at Liverpool.
That will certainly be the case if one of the greatest players in the club's storied history does not come to an agreement over a new contract. Salah is about the enter the final six months of his current Liverpool deal.
As things stand, the 32-year-old will walk away on a free transfer come the summer. However, he does want to remain at Anfield and, as Jamie Carragher has argued, it is hard to see where he could go next.
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That's nothing to do with his ability. Salah is as brilliant as ever, which is underlined by the fact that no player has been involved in more goal contributions in European football's big five leagues across all competitions. this season The Egyptian already has already has 16 goals and 12 assists to his name.
They are figures that would be of any interest to any team in the world. But, despite his contract situation, bar from the well-documented interest from the Saudi Pro League, Salah's name isn't getting linked with other top clubs, which is perhaps due to his age and his salary demands.
Paris Saint-Germain have distanced themselves with a move for the Premier League's joint leading goalscorer while William Gallas, the former Chelsea defender, says his old club, who appear to be emerging as the Reds' major challengers domestically this season, should have no interest in re-signing the forward.
Salah spent time at Stamford Bridge at the start of his career, making just 19 appearances before spending two years on loan in Serie A with Fiorentina and then Roma, the latter of whom he joined permanently and scored 19 goals in 41 games in the 2016-17 campaign.
That form convinced long-term admirers Liverpool to shell out an initial £36.5m fee for his services in June 2017. Countless individual and team honours later, not to mention 227 goals in just 371 appearances, and it's safe to say that it's been money well spent.
But Gallas would not want Salah at Chelsea, even if it was on free. "I think Chelsea should reject the chance to sign Mohamed Salah as a free agent this summer, I think he would be a disruption on the squad," the ex-France international said.
"The current Chelsea team are all learning and growing together and it’s working for Enzo Maresca. They are all part of a generation with no big egos, despite Cole Palmer being the focal point.
"I think bringing in a player like Salah wouldn’t be good for the balance of the squad, despite his form in the Premier League and how it would weaken Liverpool."
The Reds currently lead the way in the Premier League, sitting four points clear of second-placed Chelsea, who have played one match more.
And Gallas, speaking to Prime Casino, said: "Chelsea can take hope in the title race from Liverpool’s draw against Newcastle and defeat against Nottingham Forest.
"We’ve seen that if you put pressure on Liverpool then teams can cause them problems, you have to take them by surprise because they love playing at a high intensity.
"Teams can sometimes be afraid of Liverpool but Newcastle weren't and that showed, you need to be direct against them and not be scared to press them higher as they can make mistakes."
The Reds host Fulham on Saturday (3pm kick-off) before Chelsea entertain Brentford on Sunday (7pm kick-off).