It’s November, and Liverpool are entering the final international break of 2024 atop both the Premier League and Champions League tables. Arne Slot, it’s fair to say, is enjoying life on Merseyside.
Rivals no doubt anticipated the Dutch tactician being jettisoned from the Anfield dugout in short time, with the weight of succeeding Jurgen Klopp supposed to be too much to bear.
That hasn’t been the case, with all cylinders firing – though none more potently than Mohamed Salah, who is cementing himself in greatness.
Mohamed Salah’s Liverpool future
Salah is approaching the end of his contract, in case you didn’t know. The Egypt superstar is rightly entering some pretty exciting conversations as he reaches this late critical juncture in his career, and he – and his outfit – have a big decision to make. And they need to make it soon.
In just over seven weeks, Salah is free to chat away with suitors overseas, and there are sure to be plenty willing to pay a king’s ransom to get this remarkable talent, who has posted ten goals and ten assists across 17 matches in all competitions for the Reds this season.
This won’t do. How aligned Liverpool and the 32-year-old are in regard to pay and the various bits and bobs that come into play when deciding upon a new deal is something that will not escape into the public discourse.
Salah is already the highest-paid player in the club’s existence, and FSG are notoriously circumspect when dishing out lucrative deals to those on the wrong side of 30. This once-in-a-lifetime forward, however, is something of an anomaly.
Liverpool’s Highest-paid Players | ||
|---|---|---|
Rank | Player | Salary |
1. | Mohamed Salah | £350k-per-week |
2. | Virgil van Dijk | £220k-per-week |
3. | Trent Alexander-Arnold | £180k-per-week |
4. | Andy Robertson | £160k-per-week |
5. | Alexis Mac Allister | £150k-per-week |
5= | Alisson Becker | £150k-per-week |
5= | Ryan Gravenberch | £150k-per-week |
5= | Federico Chiesa | £150k-per-week |
Sourced via Capology | ||
Liverpool will of course hope to extend the contract of one of their greatest forwards ever. Ah, but there are variables at play. Who knows how it will pan out? FSG, to be sure, are drawing up a success plan.
Liverpool looking at Salah replacement
As per Football Insider, Liverpool are in the running to sign Eintracht Frankfurt’s Omar Marmoush, though Manchester City also have a vested interest in the forward.
Marmoush, 25, has been one of the most in-form players in Europe this season, and his German club are happy to field bids totalling £60m, which is of course no small sum.
It’s understood that the Egypt international would only leave if he was guaranteed a nailed-down starting berth, thus putting City, who enforce regular rotation, at a disadvantage.
Liverpool must make their move if Salah leaves. Marmoush is potent enough to succeed his countryman and, moreover, plays a bit like Darwin Nunez.
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How Omar Marmoush compares to Darwin Nunez
Marmoush is just like Nunez, though there’s one glaring polarity when comparing the two skill sets: The Frankfurt star is one of the most clinical forwards in Europe right now.
Most G/A across Europe’s Top-5 Leagues (24/25) | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Rank | Player | Apps | Goals | Assists | G/A |
1. | Harry Kane | 10 | 11 | 7 | 18 |
1= | Omar Marmoush | 10 | 11 | 7 | 18 |
3. | Robert Lewandowski | 13 | 14 | 2 | 16 |
4. | Raphinha | 13 | 7 | 8 | 15 |
5. | Mateo Retegui | 12 | 11 | 3 | 14 |
5= | Vinicius Junior | 12 | 8 | 6 | 14 |
5= | Mohamed Salah | 11 | 8 | 6 | 14 |
Stats via Transfermarkt | |||||
Level with Bayern Munich’s Harry Kane as the most prolific player across Europe’s top five leagues this season (league statistics only), there’s just cause for Liverpool’s interest.
Indeed, hailed for his “ridiculous” performances by sports media professional Cristian Nyari, Marmoush is proving to be Egypt’s greatest new talent, equipped with the skills and the confidence to effectively replace Salah – perhaps he can do it at Liverpool too.
After all, the 25-year-old operates within the same parameters as Nunez. According to FBref’s player-comparing database, Liverpool’s centre-forward is one of Marmoush’s most comparable players, and given that Nunez has made gains under Slot this season, it might be that the Frankfurt star could hit the ground running, should he indeed sign.
Marmoush loves a goal, but he’s also among the most creative and dynamic in the game right now, ranking among the top 1% of forwards across Europe’s top five leagues over the past year for goals scored, the top 3% for shot-creating actions, the top 5% for progressive carries and the top 6% for successful take-ons per90, as per FBref.
A carry is considered progressive if the ball is moved towards the opponent’s goal at least 10 yards from its starting point or is carried into the penalty area.
This does run nicely against Nunez’s style of play. The Uruguayan, while only chalking up three goals and two assists across his 14 Reds appearances this term, started only seven of those.
But he’s made headway under Slot’s wing, and this is down to his underlying parts. The 25-year-old ranks among the top 17% of positional peers for shot-creating actions, the top 16% for progressive carries and the top 8% for tackles per 90.
His tenacity is pretty much overpowering the absence of a clinical-edged attacking sense, but in Marmoush, Liverpool could land a player of similar proportions but one that is borne with a potency that may indeed see him successfully replace Salah.
For £60m, it wouldn’t be a cheap deal to pull off. But even so, should Salah leave, this would be the perfect player to bring into the fold.
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