Richard Hughes makes the BIGGEST mistake of Mo Salah saga

Liverpool’s current treatment of Mohamed Salah makes the club’s decision to renew his contract all the more baffling.

Salah’s previous deal was due to expire in summer 2025. And the player’s desire to get another contract may have acted as the ultimate incentive.

He produced the greatest individual season in Premier League history - winning the top scorer, playmaker and player of the year awards. That concluded a clean sweep of the player prizes for Salah - who was then rewarded with a lucrative new deal.

Current estimates place the contract at £400k per week - plus bonuses - until summer 2027.

That means Liverpool committed to over £40m in salary to Salah - an eye-watering sum for any player and second only to Erling Haaland in the Premier League’s most-paid list.

However, Haaland is only 25 whereas Salah is 33. He will be 35 by the time his contract runs out. There aren’t many forwards in that pay bracket in world football - with the exceptions of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.

And to be perfectly frank about those two - they are in semi-retirement when it comes to the club game.

Salah unhappy at Liverpool this season

Salah is not a one-man show; the kind of player to solve problems by himself. Like any forward he needs supply and he needs support. Liverpool hollowed his out over the summer - with Trent Alexander-Arnold, Darwin Nunez and Luis Diaz leaving.

Salah has gone on record about how much he loved playing with Nunez - while analysis has shown that the Egyptian King is missing Trent and Diaz more than anyone else.

Right now - when he plays - Salah is struggling to get the ball in the same kind of positions that he did when Trent was around. He is spending less time in the opposition penalty area and taking fewer shots.

The numbers he is producing in this context are respectable - he remains among Liverpool’s most productive forwards for goals and assists.

Certainly compared to Florian Wirtz and Alexander Isak, Salah’s numbers still stack up favourably.

But right now it looks ever more clear that the time to say goodbye was last summer. The new contract was a reward for what Salah did in 2024/25 and not a predictor for how he would fare through to 2027.

He should have been told there’s no renewal - much like Manchester City did with Kevin De Bruyne - who despite a stellar career was never going to get a new deal on the wages he desired.

Salah leaving for Afcon and playing in World Cup too

Salah could have left with the perfect farewell - as a champion entitled to pick his next destination and his legendary status secured. And when you consider the load on Salah in this current campaign a parting of the ways makes even more sense.

He is due to to play the Africa Cup of Nations - starting in only a matter of days - and that could wipe out his involvement for up to a month and a bit.

That’s about £2m he’s earning for no work at all. And then there’s the FIFA World Cup next summer. Owing to what happened in 2018 - where he was brutally injured just before the tournament began - Salah needs a brilliant campaign for the Pharaohs.

His focus will no doubt be on international matters at various times for the next six months - and when he returns from the North American tournament he will be exhausted.

Salah will then have to face into a final season - as a 34-year-old winger in need of a rest.

No way back after Salah interview

The renewal only really makes sense if you consider that Liverpool wanted to get rid of him at the earliest possible juncture - thereby earning some money back.

The club got plenty of money from Saudi Arabia for the likes of Nunez and Fabinho in previous seasons and were probably hopeful of doing the same with Salah - perhaps as early as January.

The renewal is not working out for anyone.

Slot cannot get the best out of him and indeed looks like he’s making Salah carry the can for the team’s poor form.

Salah’s burned his bridges as a result of his interview on Saturday. And the club’s negotiating position will have been weakened as interested teams will know for certain he wants out.

The last player of Salah’s vintage to move to Saudi was Ronaldo - but Al-Nassr paid NO fee for him as the player had his Manchester United deal cancelled.

Liverpool will be hoping Salah’s future won’t play out the same. Following the Brighton game on Saturday we will have a much clearer picture.

From this vantage point however it looks like a mistake to have signed up the Egyptian King for a new deal.

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