Liverpool icon Steven Gerrard has suggested the main reason why Mo Salah has been so successful at Anfield, while also urging the forward to extend his contract.
Salah has been sensational since joining Liverpool from Roma in July 2017, having broken all sorts of records on his way to reaching 218 goals in 360 games. Salah has overtaken Gerrard and is now fifth on the list of Liverpool’s all-time leading scorers as he hunts down the likes of Billy Liddell and Gordon Hodgson.
The Egyptian is also joint-ninth on the Premier League all-time scorers chart on 162 goals, with the feats of Robbie Fowler (163) and Thierry Henry (175) in his sights.
Salah played a crucial role in Liverpool’s success during the Jurgen Klopp era, firing them to a host of trophies including the Premier League, Champions League and FA Cup. He has also enjoyed a great start to life under Arne Slot, having notched seven goals and six assists in 11 games so far.
But the right winger’s future on Merseyside is unclear as his contract is due to expire at the end of the season and Saudi clubs are lurking.
Gerrard manages Al-Ettifaq in the Saudi Pro League and could theoretically come up against Salah next term. But Gerrard wants Salah to stay put, while he has also lauded the 32-year-old’s ‘obsession’ with his craft.
“I am not surprised [by Salah’s longevity] because I think he is obsessed with the game and I think you can see the body shape, the routines you can see, I obviously follow his social media and I always talk to people [about him],” the legendary former midfielder said on Redmen TV’s 12-hour stream to raise money for Zoe’s Place.
“I always pick John’s (Achterberg, Al-Ettifaq goalkeeping coach who used to work at Liverpool) brain on a daily basis and he says he [Salah] was really obsessed to be the best. He wants to break records and he wants to be remembered as the best, so I am not surprised in terms of how he approaches his profession.
“I think he is going to be one of these players that we will all appreciate even more when the day eventually comes that he moves on.
“I still think we’ll get a couple of years out of Mo Salah, he will deliver for many more years because of his shape, his professionalism, so I hope he stays. I hope we get more out of him and I am not surprised because the ones who are obsessed with the profession [succeed].”
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Salah future a huge talking point at Liverpool
Liverpool fans, like Gerrard, are desperate to see Salah pen fresh terms as he is a hero at the club and is key to their goalscoring threat.
On Monday, it emerged that Salah wants a ‘massive’ new three-year contract in order to extend at Liverpool.
Despite his importance to the side, it remains to be seen whether Liverpool will meet these demands due to the attacker’s age.
TEAMtalk understands Liverpool are more confident about getting Virgil van Dijk and Trent Alexander-Arnold to agree new contracts.
But Gerrard’s former Liverpool team-mate Jamie Carragher thinks Salah’s pursuit of records will work in the Reds’ favour when it comes to contract talks.
“He’ll have an eye on Thierry Henry and Frank Lampard by the end of this season, I would imagine, and I think stats like this are one of the biggest reasons why Mo Salah will sign a new contract at Liverpool,” Carragher said.
“Of course, they’ll be talking about money and length of contract, but I think these are the things that really get the juices flowing for Mo Salah. He breaks all the records at Liverpool, and getting as far as he can up those lists, I think that’s a big part of his focus as a player.”
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Liverpool news: Salah replacements, revenge on Real Madrid
Amid uncertainty surrounding Salah’s future, Liverpool are taking a look at the market to see if they can find a top winger who might be able to replace at least some of the Egyptian’s goal threat.
Liverpool have been recommended Bayern Munich ace Leroy Sane – who has entered the final year of his contract – by their own former wide man Jermaine Pennant.
“There are wingers out there with the pace and goalscoring ability that you could replace Mohamed Salah with. I’d love to see Leroy Sane come in from Bayern Munich, after seeing what he did to Arsenal in the Champions League [in April],” Pennant said.
“I haven’t seen many players do that to Mikel Arteta and Arsenal, and he does it every week in Germany. He knows the Premier League from his time at Manchester City, so for me he would be a great replacement for Salah if he leaves Liverpool.”
Another option is Borussia Dortmund’s Jamie Gittens, who found the back of the net during his side’s 5-2 defeat to Real Madrid on Tuesday night.
Meanwhile, Liverpool could get revenge on Madrid for pursuing Alexander-Arnold by trying to bring a Los Blancos star to the Premier League.
Reports in the Spanish press claim Liverpool and Arsenal are both preparing ‘significant offers’ for Rodrygo, another winger who could succeed from Salah.
Rodrygo has been brilliant for Madrid but club chiefs at the Bernabeu have opened the door for him to leave after Kylian Mbappe joined over the summer.
Salah key to Liverpool success
Mo Salah’s major honours with Liverpool and how he contributed
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