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Salah faces an increasingly uncertain future at Liverpool | Liverpool FC via Getty Images
Mohamed Salah faces an uncertain future at Liverpool, but how will the club possibly replace him if he departs?
Four months ago, Liverpool were involved in one of the biggest transfer sagas in Premier League history, as they convinced former Newcastle United striker Alexander Isak to tarnish his hero status on Tyneside for a shot at trying to win the Champions League with the reigning champions of English football. It was an exhausting slog for all parties involved and a real demonstration of just how big a role player-power can have in transfer discussions.
Since joining the club, Liverpool’s British record £130m move for Isak hasn’t exactly gone to plan, with the towering forward yet to find any kind of goal-scoring form. Hopes of the Reds trying to settle things down with a calmer January have been abruptly halted by an even bigger story.
Mohamed Salah, arguably the biggest star the club has had in the Premier League era, brewed up a storm by publicly declaring his working relationship with Arne Slot had completely broken down. He also hinted that the upcoming league match against Brighton, just before AFCON, could be his final appearance at the iconic Anfield stadium.
It’s a story which is likely to divide Liverpool fans across the world in a similar way to the Ronaldo vs Eric Ten Hag saga of 2022 or perhaps even Keane vs McCarthy in the 2002 World Cup.
Will Mohamed Salah leave Liverpool?
It’s often said there are two sides to every argument and that statement very much applies to Salah vs Slot.
Salah’s argument will be that he has credit in the bank at Liverpool. He’s scored 250 goals for the club, has contributed a further 116 assists and has just enjoyed arguably the best individual campaign of any player in the Premier League era with a staggering 29 goals and 18 assists.
He’s also the team’s second best player in terms of goal contributions this term behind Cody Gakpo and has far outperformed Isak despite being substituted for the Swede in all of the last three matches. The forward will argue that while his performances haven’t been at his usual high standards, neither have most of those around him with Virgil van Dijk and Ibrahima Konate also failing to hit the levels.
However, the counter argument is that Slot’s the manager of Liverpool and the man in charge of making major calls. He’s assembled England’s answer to the Galacticos with sheer spending power, and when the full squad is fit, it is inevitable that a major name or two won’t make the team sheet.
On the field, Salah’s is arguably guilty of not always tracking back to put in a shift defensively, and while that can be excused when he’s delivering goal contributions week-in week-out, it becomes harder to justify when he’s not hitting the same numbers and his team are losing matches.
Ultimately, the situation looks to be at breaking point for one or maybe even both of Salah and Slot before the end of the season. A resolution could be to cash in on Salah in January amid interest from the Saudi Pro League to help fund a high-profile replacement. But if that decision is made how would Liverpool possibly go about replacing one of their all-time greats?
Liverpool should look to sign Michael Olise
That was well before the current Salah drama exploded, as the club drew up plans to ensure they would have a high-quality, long-term replacement ready to immediately step in upon Salah’s eventual exit. However, the need for a player of Olise’s ilk has definitely intensified in recent weeks after Salah’s comments.
Salah was involved in 55% of Liverpool’s goals in the league last season. And his lowest goal tally in a league season since joining is 18. Across all competitions it’s been nearly a decade since he failed to hit 20 in a campaign and he’s at times carried Liverpool to silverware. No winger in world football at present produces those kinds of numbers and there are very few in general who have in the Premier League era, except a young Cristiano Ronaldo and arguably Gareth Bale for a brief period.
Nevertheless, if Liverpool are to go big on a player then Olise could be the man to fill the void. The 23-year-old France international has been exceptional since his £51m move to Bayern Munich, registering 29 goals and 36 assists in 77 appearances.
He’s blessed with exceptional pace, great technical ability and is the calibre of player that can immediately improve those around him. Olise is Premier League proven from his time at Crystal Palace and should have little to no adaptation period.
The stumbling block could be the price tag, however, with a reported £150m figure required to secure his services. He along with £65m-valued Antoine Semenyo make up arguably the best two options on the market if Liverpool do decide to cash in on Salah at a time where his powers and relationship with the manager appear to be fading.
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