Replacing the irreplaceable: Potential Mohamed Salah successors Liverpool could consider | OneFootball

Mohamed Salah's superpowers appear to have slowed a little this season and Saudi Pro League suitors appear primed to pounce.

The expectation is that this will be Salah's final season atLiverpool, even if a mid-season bust-up with Arne Slot has since been worked out.

Replacing Salah appears an impossible task. This is a player whoonly Ian Rush and Roger Hunt have outscored in a Liverpool shirt - and each played significantly more games.

As Liverpool look to replace the irreplaceable, we've profiled potential candidates.

Michael Olise

Perhaps the dream target for the Reds and a player most certainly on the club’s radar. Michael Olise has evolved into one of Europe’s best wide players since leaving thePremier League for Germany, becoming an integral part of Bayern Munich’s free-scoring forward line.

Olise scored 20 goals and laid on 20 assists in his debut campaign, leading theBundesliga for goals created as Bayern won the title. He’s continued that form in 2025/26, averaging a goal involvement every 62 minutes in league action.

Highly-productive and Premier League proven, there’s arguably not a better option than Olise. Prising him from the Allianz Arena, however, is another thing.

Nico Williams

Having been heavily linked with Barcelona last summer, Nico Williams emphatically ended talk over a transfer by penning an astonishing 10-year deal at Athletic Bilbao. Case closed, you may think, but the Spanish side's subsequent struggles have put his future up in the air again.

Athletic are marooned in mid-table in La Liga, while a reported €95m release clause makes Williams gettable.

The 22-year-old is yet to truly produce elite output, but carries an electricity that Liverpool have lacked since Luis Diaz's departure.

Yan Diomande

Each season there are players who seemingly explode out of nowhere. This season, it's Yan Diomande.

The 19-year-old was a relatively low-profile signing for RB Leipzig last summer, but has been arguably the Bundesliga's breakout star.

Diomande has scored seven times and provided four assists in just 15 league starts, while he ranks in top 15% of wingers across Europe for progressive carries, successful dribbles and chances created.

The tools are all there for Diomande; expect a bidding war this summer.

Rodrygo

Rodrygo’s unrest atReal Madrid has been well-documented with the Brazilian struggling for favour across the last 18 months. He’s started just six games in La Liga this season and English teams are monitoring his situation.

While the 25-year-old’s numbers have been modest over the last two seasons, Rodrygo provides proven quality on the big stage, having had an important role in Champions League triumphs in 2022 and 2024. Comfortable in a variety of roles across the front three, he’d be a useful option for Arne Slot.

Yankuba Minteh

Arne Slot has worked with Yankuba Minteh before, with the Gambian enjoying an impressive period on loan at Slot’s Feyenoord in 2023/24, scoring 10 goals in the Eredivisie.

Those performances led to a £30m move toBrighton, where the 21-year-old has provided the Seagulls with an electric outlet. A return of 10 goals and assists in 20 league starts last season was a respectable return for the youngster, whose potential is clear despite a need to improve his end product.

There’s a hint of Sadio Mane about Minteh, a player who has impressed in the Premier League and has the raw attributes to go up another level.

Bradley Barcola

Liverpool were tentatively linked with Bradley Barcola in the summer, amid suggestions PSG may consider offers for the Frenchman. Barcola began last season on fire in a coming-of-age campaign, scoring nine times in his opening 11 games of the Ligue 1 season.

The arrival of Khvicha Kvaratskhelia in January added competition for places, and Barcola began the 2025 Champions League final on the bench.

PSG are not actively looking to sell, but a big bid could be entertained given their embarrassment of riches. Barcola’s best football has come from the left, but he has featured in all three frontline positions at the Parc des Princes.