Huge Liverpool boost as manager demands Salah transfer is ‘ruled out’ at Euro giants over his age

Joe Williams
Liverpool forward Mohamed Salah
Mohamed Salah has been linked with a move to Barcelona.

Liverpool forward Mohamed Salah isn’t wanted at Barcelona with Hansi Flick urging the Catalan giants to look elsewhere, according to reports.

The Egypt international has been in good form once again this season with Salah contributing ten goals and ten assists in 16 matches in all competitions.

Salah, along with Virgil van Dijk and Trent Alexander-Arnold, is out of contract at the end of the current season with no concrete signs that he will stay or go.

Liverpool are reluctant to offer long-term deals to players in their 30s but the 32-year-old will feel like he deserves a lucrative contract because of his continued brilliant form in a Reds shirt.

After scoring the winning goal as Liverpool came from behind to beat Brighton 2-1 on November 2, Salah hinted that his future at Anfield remains uncertain in a cryptic message on social media.

Salah wrote: “Top of the table is where this club belongs. Nothing less. All teams win matches but there’s only 1 champion in the end. That’s what we want.

“Thank you for your support last night. No matter what happens, I will never forget what scoring at Anfield feels like.”

And now reports in Spain claim that Barcelona boss Flick ‘rules out’ a summer move for Salah ‘due to the advanced age of the African, who is currently 32 years old’.

Salah had ‘offered himself to Joan Laporta and Deco’ at Barcelona but Flick ‘prefers to forget about Salah and focus his efforts on Leroy Sane’, who he used to manage at Bayern Munich.

The report adds that ‘Flick has taken a firm stance and it doesn’t seem like anything or anyone can change his mind regarding Salah’s arrival’.

Richard Dunne has been extremely impressed by Salah’s form this season with Liverpool top of the Premier League in their first season under Arne Slot.

When asked for one player who has stood out in the Premier League this season, Dunne told Gambling Zone: “If I had to pick one star man from the Premier League this season, then I’d go for Mo Salah. The way that he has started the season has been fantastic and, obviously, there’s concerns over whether he’ll sign another contract, or if this his last year.

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“I didn’t think he finished the back end of the last season very well. It seemed like he had a falling out with Klopp at different times, but he’s come back and been fantastic.

“His contribution to the team already this season has been huge. For Liverpool to be successful they need him to try and keep at those levels for the rest of the season.

“As for his contract, a lot of the time when a player is in the last year of his deal, there’s a lot of unnecessary outside noise rather than the player becoming unsettled or distracted. Top players typically get on with the job and don’t lose sight of their main goal.

“He’s been brilliant this season, he’s so focused on what he wants to do. He’s so focused on Liverpool and on his own success. He likes scoring goals, he likes being creative, he likes being talked about. He wants to be back in that Ballon d’Or running.

“He’s completely focused on himself and on his football and has forgot about any outside noise. Liverpool are the really benefiting from that focus this season.”

When asked which Liverpool contract rebel is likely to go, Dunne added: “I think that Salah might be the one out of the three that would leave. He almost threatened it a couple of years ago, everyone heard the stories that he wanted to move on. I think he’s probably getting to the stage where he does want a new challenge.

“Like every superstar that leaves, you think it’s the end of the world for your football club, but there will always be a replacement. Top clubs always find someone to come in and do the job.

“I think Salah’s been fantastic for Liverpool. I would imagine the money and the length of contract that he’s looking for is probably beyond what Liverpool are willing to go to. Liverpool have got to be true to themselves in terms of the business side of it.

“For Salah, he’s done everything in the Premier League. If he can finish this season as a champion again, I think that might be the time for him to move on, although I still think he’s got plenty and plenty to offer Liverpool.”