Mohamed Salah could follow Cristiano Ronaldo as Liverpool’s transfer plans hint at a summer move

With a makeover almost as dramatic as the one Liverpool underwent this summer, Mohamed Salah turned up for Egypt duty at the weekend.

Less than two weeks after his domestic season with the Reds ended, Salah returned to Cairo with a striking new haircut that attracted attention and generated column inches. The Reds’ 25-goal top scorer will give the new outfit his first outing when he is involved for Egypt against Burkina Faso and Guinea-Bissau in next week’s World Cup qualifiers.

What happens after that, however, remains a mystery, with Egypt also keen to have Salah as one of their over-23 players for the Paris Olympics later this summer. Inclusion in that competition would mean he would miss the Reds’ tour of the United States in late July and early August, immediately presenting new head coach Arne Slot with a headache.

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From a footballing point of view, Slot would like to have as much time as possible in the summer to work with a player of rare gifts like Salah, while you would expect Liverpool, from a commercial point of view, to- and want his main man on the field as well while searching. to promote their brand in the US market.

For now, that issue remains unresolved, as does what will happen to the winger’s long-term status as a Liverpool player. Now in the final 12 months of the tenure he signed on the Greek island of Mykonos two years ago, Salah, who will turn 32 in a fortnight’s time, is seeing widespread speculation over his future as a result .

With new ‘CEO of football’ Michael Edwards and Julian Ward, Liverpool’s two former sporting directors now back at the club, there are unlikely to be any major concerns given the relationship that exists between the pair and Ramy Abbas, the Colombian lawyer . which represents Salah.

But while the topic remains without a definitive conclusion, the discussion about the striker’s next move will continue. When you’re Egyptian – where even an end-of-season trip to the barbers garners so much interest – such talk is to be expected.

For their part, Liverpool insist they have yet to be contacted by Egypt over the Olympics issue and are adamant they are planning for life with Salah in the camp for the upcoming campaign.

It has also been reported that the Saudi Pro League, who tried to lure him to the region last summer, believe he wants to stay on Merseyside for the start of the slot era. His tweet within hours of Slot’s official confirmation last month was proof enough of that.

If Salah is indeed set to stay, which all indications suggest he will be, then that represents an early flop for Slot and the new-look squad behind him as they plot for the campaign ahead. The fresh terms of the biggest contract ever handed down at Anfield will be a different story entirely, however, and will depend on a number of factors.

Can a 32-year-old Salah continue to perform at the levels shown over the past seven years? Will owners Fenway Sports Group look to push hard on any renewed terms? Does the Liverpool man want to stay beyond 2025? There is no easy answer to this particular situation.

Gameplay-wise, though, there’s a lot to be excited about. Liverpool continue to be linked with a number of wide forwards, with Leeds United’s Crysencio Summerville, Brentford’s Bryan Mbuemo and PSV Eindhoven star Johan Bakayoko all named in the gossip columns of late.

For the latter two, their best form has come when operating from the right of attack, which is an area Salah has become synonymous with during his time on Merseyside, where he plundered 211 goals in 349 games.

However, with Slott set to change Jurgen Klopp’s trademark 4-3-3 to his preferred 4-2-3-1, however, there is a case to be made for converting Salah’s previous version on his heels jet, in a supreme poaching inside the penalty area?

Last season’s goals at Anfield against the likes of Aston Villa, Newcastle, Brentford and Brighton – to name just four – showed the Egyptian’s ability to sniff out chances inside the area in the mold of a more traditional No.9.

Fifty-five goals since signing the new deal is enough evidence to suggest Salah is showing no real signs of slowing down, but the Reds continue to be linked with a number of younger players operating in his trademark position, the idea Salah as the centerpiece of the attacking setup is a prospect that could intrigue Slot.

The days of Salah dancing away from a handful of defenders before lashing one into the top corner from a wider area are becoming rarer, but he has lost little of his production in terms of numbers, even considering a regular couple of months towards the end of the term after a nagging hamstring problem halted progress.

It’s something Cristiano Ronaldo was able to do so effectively as the miles began to pile up for the Portugal legend in his early 30s. Ronaldo made a name for himself as a loose-footed winger in his late 20s at Manchester United before reshaping his game to become more of a pragmatic inside-the-box poacher at Madrid.

“I wonder if he’s preparing for a long career as a centre-forward where the run doesn’t have to be 11km, 12km a game, it can be 7km, 8km, 9km, where he can still score two goals and maybe live in moments. Gary Neville remarked of Ronaldo in 2017. “He lives off moments more than his overall performance now.

“I think he’s going to continue for a long, long time. And in this game, he’s becoming a scorer, he’s getting into the box more, he’s hitting the near post, his header is incredible anyway. I think we’ve seen the transformation of a player “He knows he’s not he can go up and down all the time. He knows he can’t pass players all the time. He’s going to be a scorer and a good one.”

It’s an assessment that Salah could, in time, also be talking about as he continues to develop at Liverpool, seven years on from his signing. Haircuts may not be the only thing changing this summer.