He didn't say that. He said 'if the Saudis offer £250m for him ..." He didn't complete the thought. So going back to what I originally said - I can see that happening (them offering that for him)
It would depend on contract details and how much of his contract is performance and appearance related. As long as he continues performing and has his place in the team it looks good. The moment he stops performing and is getting paid £350k per week to sit on the bench he becomes a massive liability. It's a massive risk either way. A risk to sell him and a risk to keep him. The danger with Salah is his performance IS strongly tied to his pace. We saw a couple years ago him drop off from his previous level... and whereas he has rebounded somewhat and is our top player again, how long can he stay that good? We probably won't ever see him as "best player in the world" again like he was a contender for a few years back, but maybe he can stay one of the best players in England for a while, who knows. Without a crystal ball into the future it is impossible to tell if selling him or keeping him is the best. I suspect Liverpool's medical staff has better data and insight than we do, so I hope they help influence the best decision.
I'd take a goal/assist a game personally. but I said the same before the January of last acon where he imploded after. realistically lfc need to get with the program and 350k for one guy is not the biggest ever wage of all time and accept if we give him a 1 year extension it's not massive terrible risk
1) Worst case scenario. Salah turns into Harry Maguire overnight after signing contract. £250mill in potential sale (probably more realistically £200mill) plus £72mill in wages blown (2 years plus 2 extra years). So absolute worst case scenario we lose between £270mil and £320mil that we could have used to secure a replacement. 2) More realistic bad scenario. He continues being good rest of this season. Maybe next season starts to wane- but earns his keep for two more seasons and the writing is on the wall... we see the need to sell him. Because we extended his contract and because Salah's name is still worth something even though he is slowing down... the Sauds still off us £100mil for him. In essence we're down the £150mill-£100mill that his transfer could have provided. It's painful drop in value, but softened by two good years out of him in the meantime. 3) Best case scenario. Salah gets a blood transfusion from Milner, becomes super human and continues to be excellent for many more years. We look back and say "thank God we didn't sell to the Saudis. I think the most likely outcome would be something in between 2 and 3.
First we can't lose a transfer fee we have not got. this is purely a risk v wages debate. 12months more is committed. so that's 18.2million quid. that's not a risk in this matter its already a sunk cost. is would be 33 at the end of that contract. add 1 extra year at 350k a week and he is then a risk of 18.2million more. he would turn 34 at the expiry of this deal. so this for me is a risk of 18.2mil for 12 months of 33 year old salah his name alone is worth that to Saudis so if it puts them off and let's us keep him so he can stay living in the UK then fine. no issue. we certainly cannot lose 100s of millions. we are at best only talking about lost opportunity cost which is different
I don't think the pace thing is such a huge risk in smaller players with the welterweight physique as it is in the 6'4" lads like Virgil and Rio. Look at Sterling, FFS - I swear he's getting quicker.
personally don't think the slight reduction in Salahs speed is that big a deal for me the biggest change is in his footwork . At his peak he beat players for fun where as now he rarely beats his man with quick footwork .
I agree. No way have Salah's performances dropped of a cliff like Mane's, Hendo's, Fab's and Windy's did before they all left. He's not as good as 3 years ago simply because he was phenomenal then. He's still first name in attack on the teamsheet though, and I really think he can be good for Maradoaka's development as well. Id keep him at least until the end of this season, unless the Saudis go totally desperate and throw £300m at us in January. Even in a year or two time he'll still be the biggest draw in the Arab world of football, so as a bare minimum we'll get £100m for him even if he goes in two years time.
Mané's form nosedived after he left, he did ok after AFCON in his final season with us - it was Salah who looked out of sorts. Mo being Mo though, his stats were still pretty good for the season.
that seems to have lessened recently perhaps because they aren't so worried about being 1v1 with him .Mind you they seem to have not noticed that he is very good at putting other players in on goal
Revealed: Liverpool open talks over Thiago deal - sources Liverpool have opened talks with Thiago Alcantara over his future at the club, sources have told Football Insider. The parties are in discussions with his contract at Anfield set to expire at the end of the season. However, it is believed negotiations with Thiago’s representatives over a renewal are not advanced at this stage. Liverpool are keen to see an improvement in the Spaniard’s availability and appearance record before making an offer to the 32-year-old. Liverpool open talks over Thiago deal - sources (footballinsider247.com)
As much as I like Thiago, I hope we don't extend his contract, he just doesn't fit in with how we play