Mohamed Salah will have one year left on his current Liverpool deal at the end of the season, but he has been linked with a move away from Anfield
Mohamed Salah will be going into the final year of his contract next season
Mohamed Salah will be going into the final year of his contract next season(Image: Getty Images)
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"Wonderful" West Ham captain Jarrod Bowen would be an obvious choice to replace Mohamed Salah at Liverpool, according to Joe Cole, who played for both clubs.
Salah will have a year left on his Anfield deal at the end of current campaign, but stoked debate about his future in December when he gave a bombshell interview claiming he'd been "thrown under the bus" by the club after being dropped by head coach Arne Slot.
Plenty of water appears to have gone under the bridge since then, and after returning from the Africa Cup of Nations last month the Egyptian has made four consecutive starts for the Reds, playing every minute prior to being substituted in the 84th minute of Saturday's 4-1 win over Newcastle.
However, should he depart this summer with clubs in Saudi Arabia interested, ex-Chelsea and England midfielder Cole, who made 42 appearances for the Reds between 2010 and 2012, feels Bowen would be the perfect replacement.
“Jarrod is a wonderful footballer, a great character and a hero at West Ham," Cole told Paddy Power. "His name will stand shoulder to shoulder with all the great players that have played for the club. He’s loved at the club and he deserves, at the peak of his career, to win silverware and fight at the top level.
“If West Ham were to get relegated, it won’t be anything to do with what Jarrod Bowen has done; he’s been a stalwart for the club. I think he’ll walk away and the majority of the fans will accept that.
“Who does he suit? Obviously, Liverpool, that slot [out wide] might come into play if Mo Salah leaves. He can go and play anywhere.”
Elaborating on Bowen's potential exit should West Ham, who are currently six points from safety, get relegated, Cole said: “I think most West Ham fans will agree that the lad deserves to go to a team that’s going to match his ambitions and give him the opportunity to play in the Champions League and show the world what he can do.
“They’re not out of it just yet, though. If they stay up, he still needs to sit down with the owners and say ‘right, what are we?’. He needs a little bit of that swagger in him now. He’s an England player. He’s delivered.
“Whatever happens at the end of this season, he should be knocking on the owners’ door and be saying, 'What’s the plan? Here’s my ambitions, are you going to match it?'
“It’s you speaking to the club, not the club speaking to you. And that’s not arrogant, because you have a finite career as a footballer and you have to squeeze as much out of it as you can. It’ll be an interesting summer for Jarrod one way or another.”
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