Salah's legacy will be made with Liverpool, not Barcelona or Real Madrid
The Egypt international star caused a stir with his remarks in the Spanish media at the weekend, but Reds fans have no reason to be concerned.
Mohamed Salah does not do many interviews. So when he does,
they often get people talking.
Salah’s sit-down with Spanish publication AS last week definitely
did the trick. And for a man of few words – his ‘relationship’ with the British
press extends to two mixed-zone chats totaling nearly six minutes – he was
pretty forthcoming.
He was, he stated, “very disappointed” at being overlooked
for the captaincy in Liverpool’s recent Champions League game against FC
Midtjylland. Trent Alexander-Arnold, six years Salah’s junior, wore the armband
in Denmark, leaving the Egypt international quite unimpressed.
“I was hoping to be the captain but it’s a coach’s decision.
I accept it,” stated Salah.
Then there was a question about his Liverpool future, and
long he sees himself at Anfield.
Another very interesting answer. “That’s a tough question,”
he said. “Right now, I can say that everything is in the hands of the club.”
How about Barcelona and Real Madrid, then? AS, you may or
may not know, is a publication with “leanings” towards Real Madrid, and so it was
kind of inevitable that Salah would be asked for his feelings on the Liga
giants.
“I think Madrid and Barcelona are two top clubs - who knows
what will happen in future?” he said, though he did add, for the record, that
his focus currently was on Liverpool, where he hopes to win the Premier League
and Champions League and, to use his own phrase, “break all club records”.
He is certainly going the right way about that right now. If
Salah’s mind is starting to wander, or if he is carrying a sense of
disappointment or injustice, it is definitely not showing in his performances.
His current form is as strong as it has ever been. He is top
of the scoring charts once again, averaging a goal every 83 minutes in the
Premier League. He has netted 16 in all competitions for Liverpool this season,
including two off the bench at Crystal Palace this past Saturday.
Salah’s contract at Anfield, worth around £200,000-a-week, will
expire in the summer of 2023, and sources have told Goal the club are sure to
offer an improved one. They want him to stay, no matter what Salah's former
international team-mate Mohamed Aboutrika states.
Salah, for his part, turns 29 next summer, and knows full
well his next deal will the biggest of his career. And while he is content in
England, it is fair to believe he knows his own value. He also knows that in
Real Madrid and Barca, as well as Paris Saint-Germain, he has many admirers
elsewhere.
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