Liverpool 'leading the race' to sign Mohamed Salah replacement
Liverpool is said to be interested in signing Inter Milan forward Marcus Thuram as the club plans for possible life without Mohamed Salah.
Salah is out of contract at the end of the season but seemingly wants to extend his stay at Anfield, and is currently waiting on a concrete proposal from the club.
Irrespective of that, Calcio Mercato says Liverpool is 'at the forefront' in the race to sign Thuram, who has registered 11 goals and six assists in 18 appearances for Inter this season.
Thuram is a striker who plays centrally, so would not be a like-for-like replacement for right-winger Salah, but his goals record for the San Siro clubs suggests he might be capable of replacing the goals in the team that Liverpool would lose were Salah to depart.
Thuram's age could be a sticking point, though, given he will be 28 by the time the 2025-26 season gets under way, and Liverpool tends to prefer signing younger players.
The fee could also be an issue, with Thuram's contract containing a $90million release clause. Thuram himself has stated that he is happy at Inter as well, saying: "Inter has always been a point of arrival, it is one of the greatest teams in the world. Last year we won the Scudetto, the year before the team reached the Champions League final: Inter represents a lot for world football."
Liverpool may not end up needing to replace Salah's goals in the team if a report by Football Insider is anything to go by. The website claims both Salah and Virgil van Dijk will sign renewals at Anfield.
Both players are out of contract at the end of the season but are seemingly keen to stay at the club. However, the report adds that there is only a 50 per cent chance that Trent Alexander-Arnold — another player whose deal will expire next June — will stay at the club.
Van Dijk, Salah and Alexander-Arnold will all be free to sign pre-contract agreements with foreign clubs from January 1 as things stand. Negotiations continue to try and find a breakthrough.
