Mohamed Salah committed his future to Liverpool by signing a contract extension to keep him with the club for the long term. Salah’s contract was due to expire at the end of the 2022/23 season, raising the possibility of a summer exit with Liverpool forced to decide whether to offer him a substantial pay rise or cash in on their main man.
Klopp on Salah’s contract:
“I knew it would happen, it was always clear Mo wants to stay – that was always the message. I spoke to him obviously and it was always clear: ‘I want to stay.’” pic.twitter.com/gjLZLMkz9k
— The Anfield Talk (@TheAnfieldTalk) July 8, 2022
After allowing Sadio Mane to join Bayern Munich, the Reds pressed home a deal for Salah to keep him at Anfield until 2026. However, he now faces the challenge of spearheading their charge for honours without Mane alongside him, while the powers of Roberto Firmino have waned over the past three years. Liverpool are backed in the odds on Premier League bets at 12/5 to win the Premier League title in the 2022/23 season behind Manchester City, after narrowly missing out on the crown last term by a point.
Salah and his team-mates will have to do even better in the new campaign to beat out City for the title, but it is the start of a new era for Liverpool without Mane and with Firmino seemingly being edged out of the line-up. Given his salary and importance to the Reds, Salah has to take on more responsibility in the final third. He has been nothing short of sensational since his arrival in 2017, scoring more goals than any other player in the Premier League during that period. He shared the Premier League Golden Boot with Son Heung-min last season and will have to remain at that level as the new players in the ranks adjust to life in England and the rigours of the top flight along with the Champions League.
Sadio Mane gets to work in his first Bayern training session pic.twitter.com/duIWHqpi2x
— MailOnline Sport (@MailSport) July 8, 2022
Replacing Mane’s impact will not be an easy task for Klopp because of his sheer level of production in the final third. The Senegalese was a perfect foil for Salah, drawing the attention of opposing defenders with his pace and movement. When it was required Mane was clinical, scoring 90 goals in 196 Premier League appearances for the Reds along with a strike rate of 24 efforts in 57 appearances in the Champions League. Either Salah will have to raise the level of his game to replace that impact, or the rest of the line-up will have to come to the fore.
Diogo Jota is not renowned for his goalscoring, but he has been effective since his move from Wolves. He scored 15 goals in the Premier League in 35 appearances, but managed only one in 11 Champions League matches. Jota has to retain that level of efficiency in the top flight and improve in Europe to ease the burden on Salah and to replace Mane’s productivity effectively.
Luis Diaz too has to hit the ground running in his first full season. Following his move from Porto in January, the Colombia international was impressive, although his statistics in front of goal were not outstanding, He scored four goals in the Premier League, but for Liverpool to achieve their goals of winning the top-flight crown and the Champions League, that will have to improve to at least double figures.
Salah is a sensational player with a devastating clinical edge, but he cannot do it alone. Mane was the perfect complement to the Egyptian, but now he has to work in tandem with new team-mates to create effective partnerships in the final third.