Why Salah’s departure could deepen a ‘summer of upheaval’ at Liverpool

Mohamed Salah’s impact on the Premier League is shown by the stories of how opposition teams prepared for him, as Liverpool may have to consider plans elsewhere. Also your members‑only newsletter today:

Already, the Egyptian and his camp have a lot of options for next season. There is considerable MLS interest, although Inter Miami are understood to have decided against making an offer for now, and a number of Champions League clubs are weighing up whether they can do a deal. Turkey may well be an option, especially with Galatasaray having just endured an increasingly rare Salah masterclass in the Champions League last 16. They have substantial financial resources.

The Premier League is being ruled out for obvious reasons, but there is now the question of whether the 33-year-old can still perform at that level.

That very uncertainty does raise further questions about Liverpool’s football leadership and whether the summer 2025 decision to give Salah a new contract was the first real misstep under an ownership that has generally overseen constant progress. Fenway Sports Group, whatever the criticisms, have transformed Liverpool from an ailing giant in disarray to the English club with the highest revenue – and, most importantly, reigning champions.

The Independent nevertheless reported on Tuesday that the Saudi Pro League is targeting Michael Edwards and Richard Hughes, which is why Salah’s departure could deepen a summer of considerable upheaval at Anfield.

Perhaps that won’t necessarily be such a bad thing, since the club say that this is still a season of transition, despite the expenditure.

The sense of transition is one reason multiple sources insist that Liverpool will not be moving on from Slot, even amid so much debate about – and criticism of – performances. The subject hasn’t been discussed.

A significant part of the rationale is that this season will end up being looked upon kindly with the passage of time, given everything that has happened.

Liverpool have consequently constantly tried to look at the bigger picture, as has been the general approach of the club under this ownership.

The wonder is whether they should have done this with Salah. It is not hindsight to say that it would have felt more “modern Liverpool” to let him go in the summer. That has even been argued a few times in this very newsletter.

Such a call would have had to go against a superb level of performance and considerable emotion, but would have involved a more calculated decision.

The scale of Salah’s drop-off has genuinely shocked some opposition sides, and it was, of course, difficult to actually predict given how good he had been. His age meant it wasn’t something that could be completely discounted, though, and football staff are also well aware that there are multiple examples of world-class players who suddenly fall off quite quickly. Look at Andriy Shevchenko at Chelsea, and arguably even Thierry Henry in his second season at Barcelona.

Salah is nevertheless right up there with Henry in making an argument to be the Premier League’s greatest ever player.

You can point to the fact that Salah has scored at least 20 goals in five of his nine Premier League seasons – and never fewer than 18. By comparison, Henry and Cristiano Ronaldo have not maintained that level for as long. Both are icons of the Premier League, the players most associated with the competition’s history. Salah, however, has played in the league longer, scored more goals, and won the same number of titles as Henry.

That is also in an era when the Premier League has been at its highest standard, when the very money involved has brought a quality that ensures it is more difficult than ever for an individual to reach the top.

What really illustrates it, however, is how opposition managers privately say they reshaped entire gameplans around Salah. One admitted to being “terrified” of him.

That has been one huge difference to this season. It says much in itself that clubs don’t feel they need to do this in the same way. Salah has instead cut an isolated figure, in a team whose infrastructure has changed.

Some players have felt too many gaps appear in their play – especially when they don’t have the ball – because the team isn’t in sync. It isn’t as intricately connected as last season, which is where there is a bit more credence to arguments that Slot won the league “with Jurgen Klopp’s team”. That isn’t really true, since that’s a lot harder to do than people say. There are enough examples of coaches failing in the same situation.

It’s also why Salah’s very departure could aid this transition.

If there is surprise that Liverpool will not insist on a fee, his wage is now so high that it will allow the club much more space when bolstering the rest of the squad.

A rising question is now over who will be making those decisions. Some in football are openly talking about how they think both Hughes and Edwards will end up going.

The latter has more logic, given that Edwards was brought in to spearhead the ownership’s multi-club project. They wanted a central European club, but that strategy was shelved due to the belief there is absolutely no value. Prices are far too high, especially when other leagues don’t bring in anywhere near the revenue the Premier League does.

It is for that reason that Edwards looks likelier to leave than Hughes. Al-Hilal still want the latter, along with Salah. The offer will have to be good. Hughes is only halfway through this new football project, after all. Liverpool now need to balance all the forwards they signed last summer.

The new team will just be missing their most celebrated player.

Get in touch

What’s next for Liverpool without Salah? Tell me what you think by emailing m.delaney@independent.co.uk.

In all of their World Cup squads going back to 1950, England have taken eight teenagers to the tournament. Name the eight.

Note: as goes without saying, they had to be teenagers at the time of England’s first game in a tournament, and had to actually travel. They did not have to play a game.

One big painful twist for Ireland and a few little ones

In the end, Ireland lost the momentum they had from Hungary and Portugal… but so inexplicably. Heimir Hallgrimsson’s team were 2-0 up against the Czech Republic and cruising, only to needlessly give away a penalty almost immediately after the second goal.

It was an utterly pivotal moment because the Czechs looked done, even at that early stage. The home crowd was quiet. Their team were doing so little and looked on the brink of implosion. A lot happened after that, but it’s hard not to think that Ireland would have easily seen the game out had they gone into half-time 2-0 up.

There were other little twists shaping the game, of course. Inside Football has been told that Hallgrimsson had long had a gameplan around Bosun Lawal in midfield, which could also have given Harvey Vale more time, but had to reshuffle once it became clear the Stoke City midfielder wasn’t going to be available for the 23.

Highly-rated sporting director ‘no’ to Spurs

Amid ongoing uncertainty about Igor Tudor’s future and Tottenham Hotspur’s plans, they have been turned down by Dougie Freedman. The former Crystal Palace executive is widely regarded as one of the best recruitment figures in the game, having recently moved to the Saudi Pro League. Spurs saw him as a potential new director of football, but he is understood to have made it clear that he is not interested in moving at this time.

Chelsea hierarchy clear on Rosenior

Inside Football reported last week that Liam Rosenior is seen by some Chelsea players as “having changed” and feeling the pressure. Some have even noted that he has stopped wearing glasses to training, amid questions over whether his messages are being heeded. The hierarchy has nevertheless made it clear that they have no plans to make a change, and there is hope that this will snap everything back in line.

There is also a view that the recent drop-off was somewhat predictable, given that he had started well, there was a sudden glut of fixtures, and a decline was always likely. The hope is that a bit of calm and a clearer midweek schedule will restore the best of Rosenior.

Ask Miguel

You've said Aston Villa are "overperforming" but is that really fair given the substance they've shown in recent seasons? Nigel

Hi Nigel, thanks for the question. The description of “overperforming” basically relates to something I have discussed a lot in this newsletter and on The Independent website: multiple academic studies show there is a 90 per cent correlation between wage bill and league finish. Villa’s wage bill is not in the top five, so even by being there, they are overperforming. It’s a good thing!

Want to ask a question?

Email me at m.delaney@independent.co.uk for a chance to be featured. 

Among a few interesting little scenes in the Wembley Suite for the Carabao Cup final was a brief interaction between Tony Adams and Sir Keir Starmer. Resplendently dressed in a three-piece red suit, the former centre-half caught the prime minister’s eye as the latter was leaving the suite. There is, after all, a lot going on in the world right now. Manchester City chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak didn’t actually attend due to the ongoing issues in the Gulf following the US–Israel attack on Iran, and Starmer, of course, knows him well. As the prime minister was leaving, though, Adams just did the classic chin-up gesture and smiled. There’s still a league to be won, after all.

Last week brought four correct outcomes out of eight, and zero correct scorelines. That leaves me on 132 correct results out of 309 as regards correct outcomes and 174 points out of 327 when factoring in exact scorelines.

These are my latest predictions:

England 1-1 Uruguay

Bosnia-Herzegovina 1-2 Italy

Czech Republic 0-3 Denmark

Kosovo 3-2 Turkey

Sweden 2-3 Poland

England 2-0 Japan

I know many of you play along so let me know how your points are stacking up via email.

Jude Bellingham, 19, in 2022
Trent Alexander-Arnold, 19, in 2018
Luke Shaw, 18, in 2014
Raheem Sterling, 19, in 2014
Theo Walcott, 17, in 2006
Aaron Lennon, 19, in 2006
Rio Ferdinand, 19, in 1998
Michael Owen, 18, in 1998

The 19-year-old Johnny Haynes was named as part of an extended squad for 1954, but did not actually travel, so doesn’t count.

Drop me an email and let me know how you did. Thanks for reading – and see you on Monday!

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