New Mo Salah contract SHOULDN'T stop Liverpool from signing Bryan Mbeumo

Liverpool have solved their Mohamed Salah problem - for a couple of seasons at least. The soon-to-be 33-year-old forward has extended his terms until 2027 - meaning he will take his Anfield reign to a decade.

He will be leaving Liverpool just before his 35th birthday as things stand. Let’s be honest there aren’t a lot of 35-year-old wingers out there performing at the highest level.

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Salah is of course unique; scoring goals and creating them at a prodigious rate. Without him it’s doubtful Liverpool would have been Premier League champions.

But it would be naive to think he will be the exact same player by the time he leaves Liverpool as he is now. That means the club cannot afford to waste any time in identifying and signing a replacement. It has got to be done sometime in the next two years.

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Why not now?

Salah is getting older and - as the last few weeks have proven - he is prone to dips in form.

It’s happened over the course of the last few seasons; if Liverpool had a player even remotely close to Salah’s capabilities then they probably could have used him during the lean spell - against Paris Saint-German and Newcastle.

Mbeumo the outstanding candidate

He may well need a player of similar ilk to share the load as he edges towards his twilight years - even if we are all hoping those days are a long way off.

Liverpool aren’t desperate for a right-winger this summer but they might view one as prudent towards future squad building.

Sporting director Richard Hughes and head coach Arne Slot don’t want to be wearing down Salah and then having to go for a replacement. A kind of succession plan while Salah is still in place could be the way to go.

It’s why the time might be right to strike for confirmed target Bryan Mbeumo.

The Brentford forward is out of contract in 2026 and so far there are no indications that he is willing to sign another one. Mbeumo has been a loyal servant to the Bees since arriving in 2019; he stayed put as first Ollie Watkins and then Ivan Toney took their leave.

He has earned his stripes - through Championship promotion and subsequent seasons in the Premier League. At 25 - and soon to be 26 - he deserves a shot higher up the food chain.

Only Salah, Alexander Isak, Erling Haaland and Chris Wood have outscored him in the Premier League this season with Mbeumo hitting 18 goals.

He’s provided another six assists for the Bees this term - in a team that keeps less possession (47.7 percent) than the likes of Liverpool (57.8) do.

Liverpool have tried to get a replacement already

Mbeumo is a tireless worker, often appearing inside his own defensive third to win the ball back and spring counters. He’s had 216 touches in his own final third this season as opposed to Salah’s 88, according to FBREF.

Salah can’t - or isn’t asked to - do that kind of work anymore, meaning Liverpool’s attacking midfielders have to do it for him.

Someone like Mbeumo on the wing would mean unlocking Dominik Szoboszlai, for example.

Brentford are now reportedly considering letting Mbeumo go if they get around £50m for him this summer. In terms of ready-made, high-quality Salah replacements, you won’t find a more suitable one for that money.

Communication channels are open between the two clubs with Brentford sending over £50m Liverpool’s way last summer for Sepp van den Berg and Fabio Carvalho. A return of the favour this summer makes sense.

It might be unlikely that Liverpool see fit to add another expensive wide forward to the ranks given they’ve just spent another £40m on Salah’s wages over the next two years.

But they did have a go at finding a replacement last summer - in the form of Federico Chiesa - and he is reported to be earning £140k per week.

With Chiesa off the books, not to mention Diogo Jota and Darwin Nunez, there would be adequate money to cover the signing of Mbeumo.

If things aren't working out with Salah by next summer, meanwhile, then there is even the option of cashing in on Saudi interest

Time for Liverpool to sign Mbeumo

But there is the potential of Mbeumo and Salah co-existing in the same line-up for a season or two at least.

Although a right-winger of some acclaim, Mbeumo can also play in behind a frontman as a support striker and even up top in a partnership. Liverpool have to angle their entire attacking structure towards Salah’s strengths.

And there’s even a chance the signing pushes Salah even further. Liverpool more or less incentivised the Egyptian King to keep his performance levels high in order to win the new contract he wanted.

He was hungry for goals and assists all season long - ending with the payoff of a league title and a new deal. It’s been a dream come true but we know Salah isn’t going to go on forever.

Succession planning should take place while players are still at the club; that’s something Manchester City for example have been good at over the last decade.

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To build a legacy of a similar stature, Liverpool should follow suit. Mbeumo is the best candidate to replace Salah and Liverpool might never have a better opportunity to sign him.