Liverpool manager Arne Slot has confirmed a £12m star is heading to Anfield as the Reds look for a Mohamed Salah replacement this summer transfer window
17:37, 18 Apr 2026
Liverpool need to rebuild this summer whether or not Arne Slot keeps his job
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Liverpool need to rebuild this summer whether or not Arne Slot keeps his job
With six matches remaining in Liverpool's campaign, Arne Slot has already started planning for what would be his third season at the helm.
The Reds will finish 2025/26 empty-handed after a miserable season, with Champions League qualification still hanging in the balance. And the departures of Andy Robertson and Mohamed Salah, alongside Hugo Ekitike's long-term Achilles problem picked up during their 2-0 loss to Paris Saint-Germain, have hardly left the reigning Premier League champions in an ideal position heading into the summer.
Describing the club as being in "transition", Slot faces a mammoth task and a critical summer transfer window if he's to have any hope of restoring Liverpool to their previous heights. Here we examines the future of an overlooked Reds talent and a possible successor to the Egyptian king in all the latest news from Anfield.
Liverpool manager Arne Slot may be on borrowed time at Anfield unless the Reds qualify for the Champions League
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Liverpool manager Arne Slot may be on borrowed time at Anfield unless the Reds qualify for the Champions League(Image: Jan Kruger, Getty Images)
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Arne Slot confirms star's return
Robertson's looming departure creates a vacancy at left-back - a role Slot has revealed will be occupied by a current Liverpool squad member, reports the Mirror.
Kostas Tsimikas will make his Anfield comeback next season once his temporary stint at Roma concludes in May. The Greece international departed Liverpool last August to link up with the Serie A outfit, but his Merseyside career is poised for revival.
LONDON, ENGLAND - MAY 14: Kostas Tsimikas of Liverpool celebrates with The Emirates FA Cup trophy after their sides victory during The FA Cup Final match between Chelsea and Liverpool at Wembley Stadium on May 14, 2022 in London, England.
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Kostas Tsimikas scored the winning penalty for Liverpool in the 2022 FA Cup final(Image: Getty Images)
Speaking before Sunday's Merseyside derby against Everton, Slot said: "Last year we made quite a lot of signings, and that's why we traded that much.
"In four windows had net spend of £150m. That says what kind of club we are. We know we are changing at least two players, but Kostas is coming back."
Tsimikas, 29, joined the Reds from Olympiakos for nearly £12m in the summer of 2020 and has made 115 appearances for the club
Possible Mohamed Salah replacement
Mohamed Salah is leaving Liverpool this summer
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Mohamed Salah is leaving Liverpool this summer(Image: Getty Images)
While a successor for Robertson has already been secured, identifying an heir to Salah won't be quite so simple.
The Egyptian maestro revealed he's departing Anfield at the season's conclusion during the March international break.
Matching the extraordinary tally of goals and assists that the 33-year-old has delivered across nearly a decade verges on the unachievable, but one player has been highlighted as a fitting successor, according to Reds icon John Aldridge.
The 67-year-old - who netted 64 goals in 104 appearances for the club - reckons West Ham skipper Jarrod Bowen has the qualities to follow Salah, pointing to his Premier League pedigree and reliable output.
Speaking to Boyle Sports about the prospect of signing the 29-year-old, Aldridge said: "I've looked at Jarrod Bowen for some years now, and I really like the way he plays football, and what he offers West Ham.
Jarrod Bowen is West Ham's talisman
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Jarrod Bowen is West Ham's talisman(Image: Getty Images)
"I joined Liverpool when I was 28 or 29. There are a good couple of years left in him. I've been saying this to a lot of ex-players for a couple of years now. He would fit the bill whenever Mo was ready to go, and even now, you still get a couple of good years at least out of him.
"If West Ham stay up, then it would be hard to get him, and he's probably not what the owners look at, age-wise. But again, I'm a bit of a dinosaur, so why not? For what's out there, if, hypothetically, we were to get him, he could get you 15 goals a season and a lot of assists. But it might not fit the makeup of the club, sadly.
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"Jarrod Bowen is a more solid option than [RB Leipzig star] Yan Diomande because he's used to the Premier League, he's used to British life. He's a lot older. A young lad coming in, it's tough, especially at that age.
"For someone to take over from Mohamed Salah. It's got to be someone solid, someone who's done it. Ticks all the boxes, has experience. Someone with pace, we need pace. Mo has lost a bit of pace, we need that up top. That is the criteria."