Mohamed Salah and Liverpool: Why the love affair ended – and what happens now

Liverpool’s long goodbye to Mohamed Salah began in plain sight. Standing in front of the Kop after scoring against Galatasaray last month, the Egyptian raised his left arm and clutched the badge with his right, a familiar pose that usually signals permanence. Instead, it was a silent farewell. Salah already knew he would be leaving Anfield when his contract expires in June, ending a nine-year reign that has yielded 255 goals, two Premier League titles, a Champions League and five other major trophies.

The 33-year-old confirmed the decision on Tuesday night via a self-produced two-minute video filmed in front of his personal trophy cabinet in Cheshire. Within 48 hours the clip had been viewed 31 million times on X alone, underlining the global fascination with the departure of a player who, behind only Ian Rush and Roger Hunt on Liverpool’s all-time scorers list, has become synonymous with the club’s modern resurgence.

Talks to terminate the final 12 months of the extension he signed last April began weeks ago after a season of diminishing returns. Salah has managed only 10 goals in 34 appearances, his lowest haul since joining from Roma for £43.9 million in 2017. The downturn prompted manager Arne Slot to drop him for November’s trip to West Ham, ending a run of 53 consecutive Premier League starts and triggering a public rupture in which Salah accused the club of “throwing him under the bus”. A temporary truce was brokered after Egypt’s Africa Cup of Nations exit, but form has remained patchy and both parties concluded that a reduced squad role next season was untenable for a player earning £400,000 a week before bonuses.

Sporting director Richard Hughes led negotiations with Salah’s representative Ramy Abbas, and Fenway Sports Group agreed to waive any transfer fee rather than pursue a summer sale that officials doubted would materialise for a 34-year-old on elite wages. The arrangement frees up salary space for a rebuild that has already cost a club-record £450 million since last summer, part-funded by £220 million in outgoing transfers including Trent Alexander-Arnold’s move to Real Madrid.

Liverpool accept that replacing Salah like-for-like is impossible. Recruitment staff admire Bayern Munich’s Michael Olise and RB Leipzig teenager Yan Diomande, yet neither is considered straightforward or economical. Instead, the evolution begun with last year’s arrivals of Hugo Ekitike, Alexander Isak and Florian Wirtz will accelerate.

For Salah, the search for a new stage is wide open. Saudi Arabia remains the most frequently mentioned destination—Al Ittihad saw a £150 million bid rejected in 2023—but the Pro League’s attacking slots are increasingly crowded, and geopolitical uncertainty has cooled some spending appetites. Europe’s heavyweights are well stocked on the right, Barcelona’s finances are strained, and PSG have pivoted toward younger talents. Major League Soccer looms as the pragmatic alternative, though no club has yet held concrete talks despite public overtures from New York City FC and the league commissioner.

What is certain is that May will bring an emotional Anfield send-off for a footballer who transformed Liverpool from a team that collected only a League Cup in the decade before his arrival into serial contenders at home and abroad. As vice-captain Andy Robertson posted: “You deserve a send-off that reflects your status at LFC—the greatest. Second to none.” The love affair is ending; the legacy is permanent.