Mohamed Salah casts doubt on Liverpool future ahead of Real Madrid showdown: ‘I am probably more out than in’

Mohamed Salah has thrown his Liverpool future into fresh doubt after admitting that he is “probably more out than in” regarding a contract extension at Anfield. The Egypt international’s current deal expires at the end of this season and his future has been a subject of speculation for some time. Salah has 223 goals from 367 games for the Reds since joining from AS Roma back in 2017 and he would be allowed to sign elsewhere on pre-contract terms starting January 1. The 32-year-old scored twice in a 3-2 win over Southampton over the weekend to extend Liverpool’s lead at the Premier League summit ahead of Wednesday’s UEFA Champions League encounter with Real Madrid (you can catch the match exclusively on Paramount+).

We break down the situation.

What has Salah said?

“We are almost in December and I have not received any offers yet to stay in the club,” Salah told media after the away win over the Saints. “I am probably more out than in. You know I have been in the club for many years — there is no club like this. But in the end it is not in my hands. As I said before, it is December and I have not received anything yet about my future. I love the fans. The fans love me. In the end it is not in my hands or the fans’ hands. Let us wait and see.”

“Of course, yeah,” Salah added of his disappointment at the current situation regarding contract talks. “I am not going to retire soon so I am just playing, focusing on the season and I am trying to win the Premier League and hopefully the Champions League as well. I am disappointed but we will see.”

How is he performing?

Salah has scored 12 goals and provided 10 assists over 18 appearances for Liverpool across all competitions so far this season — that is a goal involvement almost every hour of play (65 minutes, to be precise). At this current pace, Salah could produce his best-ever campaign with 44 goals and 14 assists back in 2017-18 the target to beat, which was a pace of a goal involvement just over every 70 minutes. The Egyptian is only the Reds’ third player in history to score 100 goals away from Anfield behind Ian Rush and Roger Hunt. Salah, who turns 33 next summer, has scored in five consecutive EPL games which includes key goals against Arsenal, Brighton and Hove Albion and Aston Villa.

“I am very professional. Everybody can see my work ethic,” said Salah of his form. “I am just trying to enjoy my soccer and I will play at the top level as long as possible. I am just doing my best because this is who I am and I try to give it all for myself and for the club. We will see what happens next. I am just playing my game, trying to chill and relax and just play. The whole team has the chemistry now with the new manager. Hopefully we keep winning and win something in the end.”

Why is it taking so long?

Discussion between Liverpool and Salah’s agent Ramy Abbas are thought to be ongoing despite the current situation. Sporting director Richard Hughes knew that this situation as well as that of skipper Virgil van Dijk and vice-captain Trent Alexander-Arnold was on the horizon for next summer. Salah, given his age and status, as well as being on the most lucrative contract, was always going to be a difficult decision to assess and therefore it should not be a total surprise that the Reds did not move immediately given Arne Slot’s arrival as Jurgen Klopp’s replacement at Anfield.

Why does this matter?

Salah rarely ever speaks with the English press and has made very few appearances in front of journalists over the seven plus years that he has been on Merseyside. The former Chelsea man clearly waited for an opportunity like this to present itself and therefore made no mistake in clearly articulating his current feelings, but also his desire to see an agreement reached in the coming weeks. Waiting until after the start of 2025 could be too late with Salah likely to be tempted by offers from other clubs from January onwards.

What could happen?

Although 32, Salah has been linked regularly with a big money move to the Saudi Pro League and Liverpool rejected an offer in the region of almost $190 million from Ittihad Club back in 2023. The player himself has rejected commenting on any similar speculation for the moment: “I do not want to speak about that. I am focused with the team now,” he said with Salah though to favor remaining in European soccer while at his current level of performance.