Salah the headline name of six stars Liverpool must move on from as Reds ‘explore exit’ for star | OneFootball

Liverpool are understood to be actively exploring the sale of a forgotten star in 2026  – but he might not be the only player to leave with Richard Hughes needing to consider five other brutal sales, including Mo Salah, and one major signing who only arrived this summer.

The Premier League champions splashed out £440m (€505m, $600m) on strengthening their squad this summer in an effort to create what they thought would be the start of a trophy dynasty at Anfield. Sadly, so far, the opposite appears to be coming true and Liverpool‘s form this season looks to have fallen off a cliff.

Indeed, they narrowly managed to avoid a 10th defeat in 14 games across all competitions on Wednesday night as they were held to a hugely disappointing 1-1 draw against Sunderland.

The visitors were much the better side and, but for some heroic last-ditch defending by Federico Chiesa, that point could have evaporated into another painful home defeat for the Reds.

In the aftermath of the draw, though, supporters have now turned on Arne Slot, naming four ‘horrible’ qualities of the performance and insisting that the sacking of the Dutchman is now imminent.

Whether Slot remains in charge into 2026 will remain a topic of hot debate, but with or without him, it seems sporting director Richard Hughes is making plans to claw back some of that lavish spending and provide the funds for further improvements.

To that end, a report on Wednesday revealed the Reds will actively explore sale opportunities in 2026 for a star who doesn’t want to leave Anfield, with the club now making it clear that Kostas Tsimikas is free to leave for the right price.

Currently on loan with Roma, the Greece international, 29, will return to Anfield when the loan spell concludes, but according to The Athletic, he won’t stick around for long.

They declared Tsimikas has no future at Anfield and upon returning, Liverpool will ‘explore offers for a permanent exit.’

However, he’s not the only player expected to move on, with speculation rising over five other stars ahead of the 2026 windows, including arguably the biggest of them all: Salah…

Salah the headline name to leave Liverpool in 2026?

Speculation that the Egyptian star could be set to leave Anfield has gathered pace in recent weeks after his omission from the last two starting line-ups Slot has picked.

With several pundits also regarding Salah as a fading force and not the player he once was, the player has once again been touted for a high-profile move to Saudi Arabia in 2026.

Despite those links, Fabrizio Romano is adamant the Merseysiders have yet to reach a firm decision on the player’s future and he can ‘guarantee’ his exit next year is not a foregone conclusion.

“At the moment from Liverpool, the message is very clear,” Romano began.

“They don’t want to judge anyone just because of these two, three months that have been complicated for all the superstars at Liverpool, almost all of them.

“So at the moment, the situation remains absolutely calm around Mo Salah. Then, what happens next summer, we will see.”

Beyond that, there have to be serious questions over the following Ibrahima Konate, Wataru Endo, Chiesa and Jeremie Frimpong.

As it stands, Konate is yet to sign a new contract at Anfield and, while Real Madrid are out of the running and with the Reds now said to be confident of striking an agreement, his questionable form this season begs the question: are Liverpool better off without?

Endo, meanwhile, has rarely featured for the Reds this season and is a long way down the pecking order. Much the same as Kobbie Mainoo’s situation at Manchester United – where he’s behind Bruno Fernandes for one spot –  the Japanese star is simply never called upon owing to the presence of Ryan Gravenberch.

Chiesa could arguably consider himself the unluckiest player of the lot were he to depart. He’s hardly done much wrong, but is just not trusted by the Reds manager and the chance to secure regular football elsewhere must be hugely tempting to the Italian star.

The player still has so much to give, but he’s wasting prime years on Liverpool’s bench.

And finally, Hughes may have to listen to offers for summer signing Jeremie Frimpong and accept that Liverpool may have got his signing wrong.

Granted, he’s been injured of late, but he’s offered very little to suggest he’s capable of being a good enough option for the Reds or dislodging Conor Bradley, who now appears favoured as the first-choice right-back.

Meanwhile, Liverpool and Chelsea have both checked in with Joel Ordonez’s camp in recent weeks as they consider making a move in January, and both the player and his club are ready to accept a winter window move, sources can reveal.

Elsewhere, the Reds are being encouraged to push through a January deal for a Bundesliga sensation, with their hierarchy now seriously looking into a deal that could hasten Salah’s departure.