West News Wire: Al Ittihad of Saudi Arabia is reportedly still trying to sign Mohamed Salah, an Egyptian attacker for Liverpool, but the English Premier League team has rejected their most recent, enormous offer.
Liverpool informed the Saudi Pro League team that Salah, one of the most recognisable footballers in the world, was not up for sale after receiving an initial bid of 100 million pounds ($126 million) and a further 50 million pounds ($63 million) in add-ons, bringing the total bid to 150 million pounds ($189 million).
Salah has been Liverpool’s leading scorer for the last six seasons, and Al Ittihad is anxious to add him to their team. They have repeatedly approached the Merseyside club with offers, each one more extravagant than the last.
The offer from Al Ittihad, one of Saudi Arabia’s leading clubs and a beneficiary of a takeover from the country’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) earlier this summer, came in a phone call on Thursday night to the president of the Fenway Sports Group, Liverpool’s owners, the Guardian reported.
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp said on Friday that he did not know about any bids for Salah.
Salah has reportedly agreed terms with Al Ittihad, the channel beIN Sports said last week.
The 31-year-old Salah has two years left on a deal worth 350,000 pounds per week ($440,563), but Liverpool is sure that they will resist the temptation to try to offload him.
Salah has not publicly commented on the offer, but Liverpool has been eager to publish photos of him smiling while working out this week.
While Liverpool won’t be able to register any new incoming transfers from other clubs until the English transfer window closes at 22:00 GMT on Friday, the Saudi Arabian transfer window will remain open until September 7, giving Al Ittihad the chance to re-enter the Salah market.
Saudi clubs have made huge waves in the transfer market this summer, signing some of the world’s best players, including Karim Benzema, Neymar and N’Golo Kante.
Salah’s emergence as the finest player in the Arab world would be a major victory for Saudi football, which has been transformed by PIF funding and now has four clubs, including Al Ittihad.
The threat posed by the Saudi Pro League and the enormous contracts on offer was recognised by Klopp on Friday. This summer, Klopp has already lost two Liverpool players to Saudi teams.
The activity from Saudi Arabia “still surprises us a little bit,” Klopp remarked. “I’m not sure where it will go, but it feels more dangerous or worrying than not. We can’t really refute it, in my opinion. The vast differences in the contracts [provided] will inevitably lead to conflict.
