The importance of Mohamed Salah highlighted amid Liverpool contract talks | OneFootball

Liverpool supporters were undoubtedly nervous when talisman Mohamed Salah hinted that Anfield may not be where his long-term future lies.

Undeniably a club great, Salah’s current contract expires in June 2025. The Egyptian forward publicly expressed disappointment at Liverpool’s failure to offer him a new contract. After Sunday’s win at Southampton, which saw the Reds move eight points clear at the top of the Premier League standings, he told reporters that he is “probably more out than in” and has yet to be offered new terms.

An unwelcome distraction in what has been an exceptional beginning to Arne Slot’s tenure, Salah’s frustration is somewhat understandable, given his remarkable contributions since joining from AS Roma seven years ago and his impressive performance this season.

Claiming Salah is Liverpool’s most important player is an understatement; any assertion to the contrary is fundamentally incorrect. The statistics speak for themselves: he currently leads the Premier League in combined goals and assists this season, with a total of 16, contributing a league-high 17 points to Liverpool’s campaign.

Consider the league standings without his direct contributions to further illustrate his impact. Liverpool have scored 24 goals and conceded eight, resulting in a goal difference of +16. However, if Salah’s goals and assists were excluded, the Reds would have only netted seven goals, resulting in a goal difference of -1, placing them on par with Bournemouth.

With such a potential impact on their goals, it’s clear that Liverpool’s points standings would appear far less impressive as well. This season, every goal contribution from Salah has secured at least one point for Slot’s team, indicating that without his contributions, the Reds would have 17 fewer points, dropping from 31 to just 14.

In the current Premier League standings, this would place them in 14th position; however, in this revised scenario, they would rank slightly better at 13th, trailing behind struggling teams like Manchester United, Fulham, and Brentford. Given his impressive performance this season, where he leads the club with 12 goals, it is reasonable to anticipate that he will climb higher in the scoring rankings as the season progresses.

One reason for the reluctance may be age. Players over 30, such as Mesut Ozil and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, experienced a decline following lucrative contracts. However, implying that Salah would face a similar fate could be perceived as disrespectful, considering the significant effort he has put into maintaining his high level of performance.

“We know clubs are hesitant to give big contracts to older players,” Salah’s agent Ramy Abbas told Harvard Business Study, “but Mohamed can play well into his early 40s if he wants to.”

Since arriving in Merseyside, the 32-year-old has proven to be nothing short of exceptional. Following his Premier League debut for Liverpool on August 12, 2017, he’s made the most appearances in the league for the Reds, comprising 262. He ranks just behind Everton goalkeeper Jordan Pickford for appearances across all clubs.

With 165 league goals, Salah has outscored everyone during this period and is only behind Manchester City’s Kevin De Bruyne for assists, tallying 74.

His minutes-per-goal ratio of 132 is comparable to former Tottenham striker Harry Kane. Salah also leads in penalties scored in the league, with 28 to his name, and he holds the record for the most hat-tricks by a Liverpool player during this time, with four.

Salah’s knack for scoring crucial goals is unparalleled; he has netted the most big chances in the top flight, with 122—23 more than Harry Kane, the next closest player. Furthermore, if we look at expected goals (xG), Salah’s total of 157 in the league since his debut is the highest of anyone, even though his actual goals surpass that figure.

The next time Salah steps out, he will face defending champions Manchester City, and the Egyptian King usually reigns in this fixture, with 11 goals and six assists in 21 appearances. He is also on the brink of becoming the first player to achieve double figures in both metrics in six different seasons.

“If Liverpool win the Premier League this season, it will be largely down to Mo Salah and his form,” Chris Sutton told BBC Sport. “The fact that physically he is in great shape now, he is going to go on for another couple of seasons at least, he is such an important player, so why on earth are Liverpool letting this rumble on? I don’t understand it.”

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