Salah did exactly what even Messi couldn’t do and that deserves a new Liverpool contract
Mohamed Salah is part of an exclusive four-player club with Kylian Mbappé. Liverpool will have to do everything possible to keep him beyond 2024, despite interest from Saudi Arabia. Jurgen Klopp on Mohamed Salah Saudi Arabia rumours
In 2022, five Liverpool players have been nominated for the Ballon D’Or award. That number rises to six if you include Sadio Mané, who scored 23 goals for the Reds and won the Africa Cup of Nations with Senegal before joining Bayern Munich in the summer. Mané finished second behind Real Madrid’s Karim Benzema – he could have won the award had the Champions League final gone the other way – with Mohamed Salah joining the top five. Meanwhile, Fabinho, Virgil van Dijk, Luis Díaz and Trent Alexander-Arnold also finished 14th and 22nd respectively. A year later, however, Salah is the only representative of Liverpool in the 30-man roster. This is hardly surprising given that the Reds have suddenly dropped to fifth in the Premier League table and only managed to reach the last 16 in the Champions League before a heavy 6-2 loss to Real Madrid.
But somehow it feels fitting – Salah is always there. Many elite players have put up comparable numbers, but very few have done so with the consistency the Egyptian has shown since moving to Anfield in 2017. Above all, it sets him apart. Along with Benzema, Paris Saint-Germain’s Kylian Mbappé and Manchester City’s Kevin de Bruyne, Salah is one of four players to be nominated for each of the five Ballon D’Or awards (it was not awarded in 2020 during the pandemic) .
You’ll notice that even Lionel Messi, arguably the greatest soccer player of all time, is missing from the list. Messi could win the award this year after leading Argentina to the World Cup – he looks the favorite ahead of record holder Erling Haaland – but he didn’t really make the cut last year when he scored just six league goals. An indifferent season for PSG. Meanwhile, Cristiano Ronaldo’s streak dating back to 2003 was also broken when he moved from Manchester United to join Saudi Arabian side Al-Nassr last year.
Yes, Ronaldo and Messi are much further along in their careers than Salah, but the 31-year-old’s achievement is still impressive. Liverpool striker Mohamed Salah is in a truly elite club
Liverpool striker Mohamed Salah is in a truly elite club
In five years, his lowest goals in a season is an outstanding 23, and while Liverpool’s fortunes have fluctuated, he has always reached world-class heights. He won in 2020/21. 31 goals in 2018 when injuries ravaged the Reds, and he added another 30 last year as many of the team’s other stars – some of whom were mentioned above – suffered sudden exits.
And Salah shows no signs of stopping. He has either scored or provided an assist in 10 consecutive Premier League matches, the longest streak since his own run of 15 between August and December 2021. At the same time, he is building an increasingly strong case for a new contract. Liverpool amid strong interest from Saudi Arabia. Although Al-Ittihad failed to sign Salah this summer, failing to make a bid of $187m (£150m / €175m), Saudi Pro League officials believe it is a matter of “when, not if” he joins, the Persian moves to the Gulf. state (via The Athletic ).
Liverpool should not accept losing Salah next year, he is on his farewell tour this season. Instead, the move should be to tie him down to a new deal and push the Pro League away, which will otherwise see the winger ripe for the picking as his current deal expires in 2025. Salah looks set to have a few more years in his role as a superstar. . he still has that athleticism and football style and based on that Liverpool will have to do everything they can to convince him to stay.