Due to the persistent rumours that Liverpool star Mohamed Salah will leave Anfield in 2025, TT has looked at seven possible successors for the Reds great.
In Liverpool’s victory over Bologna on Wednesday night, Salah increased his record to 48 goals in 90 Champions League games, making him the highest-scoring African player in the history of the league.
Even though the legend of Anfield’s records are falling, he still has less than nine months left on his Anfield contract and can sign a pre-contract deal with any foreign bidder starting on January 1.
Although there will likely be more discussion about an extension in the days to come, Salah has not publicly addressed his future since he dropped the bombshell “as you know this is my last year” live on Sky Sports after the team defeated Manchester United 3-0 at the beginning of the month.
Following those remarks, though, a plethora of assertions and denials regarding the player’s future have been made; his current £350,000 contract is set to expire on June 30.
Concerningly for Liverpool, Saudi Pro League teams are still keeping a close eye on one of the best players in the Premier League over the previous seven years.
And because of that allure, TT considers seven players who might succeed the legendary man on Merseyside.
Jarrod Bowen
Another player who has frequently been linked to a move to Merseyside, given his continued prominence as West Ham’s primary offensive threat.
The England international started the new season in excellent form, having scored 20 goals and sent out 10 assists in 44 games in all competitions for the Hammers last season.
Bowen is the best man to replace the Egpytian, according to prior references to him as the “claret and blue Salah.”
The former Hull City player was undoubtedly a favourite of former Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp, who declared the attacker to be his “favourite player” aside from his own prior to West Ham’s match against the Reds last season.
It has been previously mentioned, meanwhile, that Liverpool will have to make West Ham a bid of between £80 and $100 million in order to sign Bowen. This is due to the fact that the Irons were able to secure him a long-term contract that will expire in June 2030.
Leroy Sane
Sane has long been connected to a move to Anfield, and the most recent claims indicate that Arne Slot is attempting to get the winger a cheap contract in January.
The summer of 2025 will mark the expiration of the former Manchester City attacker’s contract, and he is reportedly unhappy with Bayern Munich’s new offer, which includes a wage reduction.
During his three seasons at Man City, he finished with 39 goals and 46 assists. His greatest season total in the Premier League was 10 goals and 15 assists, which was not too far below some of Salah’s performances.
Sane has frequently played on the right wing for Bayern, even though he primarily played left for City. In 179 games for the Bundesliga’s biggest clubs, Sane has 50 assists and 49 goals.
If Liverpool does choose to pursue the Germany international, they may have it all to themselves as possible bidders Arsenal and Newcastle have also been mentioned.
Khvicha Kvaratskhelia
The Napoli attacker is another big name that Liverpool has been watching for a while. He performed well in Serie A and is rumoured to want to go in order to play for one of the top teams in Europe.
Over the past few seasons, Kvaratskhelia has been regarded as one of Europe’s top wingers, and he made an impression for Georgia at Euro 2024.
The 23-year-old became a member of Napoli in 2022 and has since played 96 games for the massive Italian team, contributing 28 assists and 28 goals.
Because of his outstanding performances, Kvaratskhelia has gained a lot of popularity among the club’s supporters and has been dubbed “Kvaradona” in honour of the great Diego Maradona.
Given that Kvaratskhelia typically performs best from the left, if the Reds were to target him, the front line could need to be switched around.
Rodrygo
Real Madrid is apparently warming to the notion of Rodrygo departing despite some rumours to the contrary, since there are persistent rumours that Liverpool is interested in the Brazil star.
In July 2019, Rodrygo became a Real Madrid official when the La Liga powerhouses paid Santos £37.6 million (€45 million / US$50.3 million) for him. A year prior, at the age of seventeen, the winger and the agreement had been finalised.
In 226 games for Madrid thus far, the 23-year-old Rodrygo has managed 57 goals and 43 assists. After Kylian Mbappe’s summer transfer, Rodrygo was expected to lose his starting position, but he has had a fantastic start to the season and has scored in Madrid’s previous two league games.
He is a like-for-like replacement for Salah because he primarily lines up on the right flank, but he can also play through the middle or on the left.
However, Rodrygo won’t be inexpensive. Though it’s possible that he may be had for £83.6m (€100m / US$111.8m), Liverpool will probably need to break the Premier League transfer record in order to acquire him.
Bryan Mbeumo
According to a recent report by TEAMtalk, a number of Premier League clubs, including Liverpool, are keeping a close eye on Bryan Mbeumo, the dynamic forward for Brentford.
The 25-year-old has scored five goals in his first six Premier League games for Brentford, including outstanding efforts against Tottenham and West Ham. He has had a scorching start to the season.
Mbeumo scored 10 goals in all competitions last season, good for second place for Brentford despite missing nearly four months due to an ankle injury.
Liverpool is drawn to the Cameroonian international’s versatility, which allows him to play anywhere across the forward line or on the right wing like Salah. He also has Premier League experience.
The Reds have a good working connection with Brentford as well, having sold Sepp van den Berg and Fabio Carvalho to the Bees during the summer transfer window.
Undoubtedly, this deal fulfils several requirements, as a reported fee of approximately £50 million is being considered.
Raphinha
After leading Leeds to victory in the 2021–2022 Premier League season with 11 goals and three assists, the Brazilian has since moved on to Barcelona, where he has contributed to 55 goals in 97 appearances to date.
Raphinha has reportedly been linked to both Tottenham and Manchester United, and it has been revealed that he declined summer offers from Chelsea and two Saudi Pro League teams.
However, Liverpool is still in the running for a player who is a left-footed right winger who enjoys cutting inside and creating havoc with his stronger foot, much like Salah.
That implies that if he joined, the Reds wouldn’t need to drastically alter their strategy.
Raphinha showed his allegiance to Barcelona throughout the summer, a time when the Catalan giants might have easily profited from his departure given their continued financial difficulties, so trying to get him to leave will be extremely difficult.
Nevertheless, a substantial offer from the Reds can still result in success on Merseyside.
Johan Bakayoko
Over the summer, there were many rumours that the talented PSV winger would leave the Dutch team. The club’s sporting director even declared, “I don’t think Bakayoko will play at PSV next season.”
At the time, the 21-year-old was being connected to both Man City and Liverpool, with Bakayoko being thought of as one of the less expensive candidates to replace Salah. In fact, his current base worth is estimated to be over £42 million (€50 million, $55 million).
Before playing for his nation at Euro 2024, the Belgium international scored 14 goals and provided 14 assists for PSV in the previous year.
Although he is now more of an outsider than some of the other names mentioned, Bakayoko has also had a strong start to the new campaign, recording two goals and two assists in nine appearances across all competitions.