Mohamed Salah’s close friend Dejan Lovren has revealed his thoughts on the Liverpool star’s contract stand-off amid intense transfer speculation.
Salah is out of contract in the summer, with the 32-year-old yet to sign a new deal at Anfield.
Fellow Liverpool stars Virgil van Dijk and Trent Alexander-Arnold are also out of contract at the end of the season.
Naturally, the Liverpool trio have been the subject of intense transfer speculation.
Salah continues to be linked with a move to Saudi Arabia following Al Ittihad’s unsuccessful pursuit of the star forward in 2023.
Lovren, who played with the Egyptian for six years at Liverpool, believes his old side have not shown his good pal enough respect throughout their discussions over a new deal.
Salah believes that there are things missing from the club’s side, and I hope it will be resolved soon. But the current reality is that he is closer to leaving than staying,” he told WinWin.
“I came to the conclusion that the club doesn’t respect him enough, or not as much as he thinks he deserves, but that’s another side of the conversation, it’s all about what’s going on behind the scene
He loves Liverpool, by the way he loves Liverpool a lot, and he wants to stay, and that’s the most important part, maybe he sees himself retiring there.”
Dejan Lovren has backed Mohamed Salah amid his contract stand-off with Liverpool. Image: Getty
Asked whether a move to the Middle East could be Salah’s next career move, Lovren replied: “If he leaves, yes, why not?! As you know, the Saudi league is starting to become more competitive.
“I think if Mo goes there, he will be one of the biggest stars, and it will be a huge marketing boom for the league, and he will definitely attract some fans with him, so let’s wait and see what happens.”
Salah has been at Liverpool since 2017 following his transfer from AS Roma.
He’s enjoyed a prolific and trophy-laden career with the Reds, scoring 237 goals for the club.
Despite being in his 30s, he is showing no signs of slowing down as he has 26 goals across all competitions to his name this season.
New frontrunners emerge to sign Mo Salah as Liverpool star’s future takes surprise twist ahead of transfer deadline
The Liverpool forward’s current contract is set to expire at the end of the 2024/25 season.
Mohamed Salah’s “most likely” destination if he leaves Liverpool has emerged – and it may not be the club you’d expect.
Salah, 32, is set to see his Liverpool current contract expire at the end of the season and can negotiate a pre-contract agreement with foreign clubs now that the January transfer window is open.
And despite the uncertainty surrounding his future, the Egyptian has been in impressive form so far this season, registering 23 goals and 17 assists in 32 appearances for Arne Slot’s side.
Although most people associated with Liverpool will be hoping he stays at the club for the next couple of seasons at least, he has been outspoken about his future, even revealing he was “far away from progress” when speaking to Sky Sports earlier this month.
In the summer of 2023, Salah was subject to a reported £150m bid from Saudi Pro League side Al-Ittihad, which was later rebuffed by Liverpool.
Now, it has emerged that another club from the Gulf State could be Salah’s “most likely destination” if he chooses to leave Liverpool this summer.
According to The Telegraph, Al-Hilal, who have recently cancelled Neymar’s contract, have emerged as the most “likely” club to sign the forward.
Due to Neymar’s departure, the club could look to recruit another ‘superstar’ which would no doubt add to the growing interest in the Saudi Pro League. The report claims that the Riyadh-based
The club currently sit top of the league after winning 14 of their 17 fixtures this season. Al-Hilal are current Saudi champions and Salah would link up with former Premier League players Aleksandar Mitrovic, Ruben Neves and Joao Cancelo if he were to make the move to the side.
Salah previously discussed the potential of a move to Saudi Arabia in an interview with Sport 360 in 2016 while he was still playing for Roma.
“I don’t know what the future holds, but I would definitely agree to a professi
