Journalist: Mohamed Salah has ‘dropped off’ and Saudi summer move ‘feels inevitable’ | OneFootball

Saudi Interest in Mo Salah Grows as Future Debate Intensifies

Media Matters panel assess transfer reality

As the January window closed and attention shifted towards the season run in, discussion around Mo Salah and a potential move to Saudi football returned to the spotlight on Media Matters from Anfield Index. Host Dave Davis was joined by journalist David Lynch, with the pair addressing on pitch performance, contract uncertainty, and mounting transfer speculation.

Lynch framed the external noise within a broader football context, explaining how results often shape supporter sentiment.

“All the talk about everything… what Arne Slot is saying in press conferences, what’s happening in the transfer market… it all boils down to if you get good results.”

Yet while team performances can steady the mood, individual futures remain open to scrutiny, and Salah’s situation is increasingly part of that conversation.

Performance levels and evolving role

Reflecting on Liverpool’s win over Newcastle, Lynch offered a measured assessment of Salah’s display. While still influential, he pointed to subtle physical changes impacting decisive moments.

“For me the chance he doesn’t put away… is a consequence really of like just not being quite as quick as he used to be.”

He added further detail on the specific moment in question.

“Lewis Hall just gets an arm on him in a way that I think two years ago nobody would have even been near him.”

Even so, Lynch was clear that Salah’s contribution remains valuable.

“He can still be incredibly useful. Players are still scared of him and he did set up a goal in a performance that was kind of so so.”

That balance between elite legacy and natural physical evolution underpins much of the current debate.

Saudi Pro League links resurface

Transfer speculation inevitably followed, with Davis referencing fresh reporting around Saudi Pro League recruitment plans. Lynch acknowledged the growing sense of inevitability around the links.

“It’s just at the point now where it kind of makes sense for everyone if that’s the way that this is going to play out.”

He outlined the multi layered appeal of such a move.

“Liverpool would get a fee. Mo Salah gets to move on and go play more regularly in a league where he would be an absolute idol.”

Saudi interest, he stressed, is nothing new.

“I don’t think that’s a huge revelation that he’s a big target for them. He has been for years.”

The key variable remains the player’s own decision.

“It’s just whether he will give them the green light, but I’d say that looks more likely than it ever has really.”

Age curve acceptance and player mindset

Lynch also connected Salah’s recent public comments to self awareness about career trajectory.

“There is a bit of frustration with his comments… which is to do with the fact that he maybe accepts himself that he’s not quite there now.”

He contextualised that view carefully, given Salah’s historic output.

“It feels way too harsh to say this about him… because he’s been unbelievable down the years.”

Still, he believes recent evidence points towards a gradual shift.

“I think it’s now clear that kind of there is a drop off in performance level unfortunately.”

Summer decision looms large

While no deal is imminent, the trajectory feels clearer than in previous windows. Saudi clubs continue long term planning, Liverpool must weigh contract value versus squad evolution, and Salah’s own ambitions will shape the outcome.

For now, he remains a decisive contributor. Longer term, the conversation is no longer hypothetical, it is strategic.

As Lynch succinctly framed it, the story is less about sudden change and more about timing.

“It just makes a lot of sense.”