Liverpool have Ligue 1 star on their shortlist to replace Mohamed Salah | OneFootball

Liverpool are stepping up their efforts to search for a successor of Mohamed Salah.

The Egyptian attacker has announced his decision to leave the Reds at the end of the season and the Merseyside club will be left with a monumental task of replacing one of their greatest modern day players.

According to reports from L’Équipe, the Merseyside club are formally preparing a €50 million push to sign AS Monaco’s highly coveted playmaker Maghnes Akliouche.

Liverpool are prioritising a major summer rebuild in which a lot of attacking and defensive additions are expected to arrive at the club after a poor season.

Liverpool plan move for Akliouche to replace Salah

Securing the 24-year-old French international is viewed not just as a move to fill Salah’s vacant position on the right flank, but as a crucial step toward injecting desperately needed technical quality back into the team.

Replacing a historic output machine like Salah is an impossible like-for-like task, and Liverpool’s recruitment team seems fully aware of that reality.

Rather than chasing a pure winger built solely on raw pace, the Reds are targeting Akliouche for his exceptional awareness and creative intelligence.

Operating primarily off the right, the Frenchman is a master at drifting into central pockets, linking the midfield to the forward line, and orchestrating overloads through quick combinations.

His output this season shows his immense maturity, acting as the principal architect of Monaco’s attack, Akliouche has racked up seven goals and 11 assists across 41 appearances in all competitions, consistently shining both in Ligue 1 and the Champions League.

Reds face competition to sign the Frenchman

Monaco famously played hardball last summer, slapping a prohibitive €70 million price tag on their academy graduate that successfully deterred the likes of Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur, though reports indicate Akliouche personally rejected the prospect of joining Spurs regardless.

With Monaco now reportedly willing to soften their stance and sanction a sale for around €50 million, the door has opened for his exit and given encouragement to Liverpool to make a move.

Yet, Liverpool are far from alone in the race. Reigning French champions Paris Saint-Germain retain a long-standing, aggressive interest in the midfielder, viewing him as the perfect premium addition to the team.

The Reds might even attempt an ambitious double swoop, monitoring Akliouche’s highly rated midfield teammate Lamine Camara as they prepare for further squad departures.