A current Liverpool icon has revealed he has a “good and ongoing” relationship with the Saudi Pro League after disclosing “serious negotiations” over a transfer.
The Reds could well see some big names depart the club this summer. The futures of Darwin Nunez, Diogo Jota and Luis Diaz currently seem to be up in the air.
Nunez has been targeted by Saudi Pro League sides, though there are clubs elsewhere also after him.
Fellow Liverpool attacker Mohamed Salah was also a huge Saudi target for some time. They were willing to pay him mega money and make him the face of the league, before he decided to renew his contract at Anfield for two more years.
By the end of that, Salah will be 34, though it seems there’s still a chance he departs for Saudi at some point, after revealing contacts there are still happening.
“It was a good opportunity to me, if I hadn’t renewed with Liverpool it would have happened,” he told ON Sport.
“My relationship with people there [in Saudi Arabia] is still good and ongoing. There were serious negotiations to sign me.”
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Salah thought he was leaving
It’s not a surprise that Salah started to negotiate with other clubs, as he has revealed he thought there was a very slim chance of staying at Liverpool.
“Based on the club’s history, 10 per cent [chance he thought he’d stay]. Yeah, because I knew the philosophy of the club,” he said.
“I’m not attacking them, I know how they deal with players over 30 in the past. I know how this situation would be.
“I did not expect the club would say ‘two years there.’ We reached a point with the money where we were all happy. I didn’t expect I am going to stay, in my head I would not stay.”
It’s easy to assume that Salah will remain at Anfield for the next two years, given he’s just had the best season of his career, but if Liverpool deem him to have dropped off when he’s still saleable, there might be a chance he’s sold, and the Saudis will be the first people calling.
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It’s believed Liverpool have already got confirmation from Florian Wirtz that he’s happy to join the club, and transfer insider Fabrizio Romano has now revealed that the Reds have tabled their first offer, in excess of €100million (£84m).
It’s believed negotiations are underway to get the deal done “very soon.”
Meanwhile, Caoimhin Kelleher has reaffirmed that he is “looking to” leave Liverpool in order to start in net elsewhere.
Another potential exit is that of midfielder Alexis Mac Allister, with he and his entourage reportedly willing to move to Real Madrid amid their reported interest in the Argentine.
Salah at Liverpool quiz