Liverpool wants to tie Mohamed Salah down to a new contract at the club — according to reports, he, Virgil van Dijk and Trent Alexander-Arnold have all received offers. But with an agreement not yet reached, the Anfield recruitment team are reportedly exploring alternatives to the Egyptian ace, including two Premier League stars.

Of the Liverpool trio, Salah may just be the hardest to replace, a point he is making with the best output of his prolific Anfield career to date. Whoever Richard Hughes might find on the market will not be able to string together 14 goal contributions in a month at the drop of a hat.

But whether the reckoning comes now or in a few years, Liverpool knows that it must eventually replace Salah, just as it must eventually replace every player. So it's unsurprising to learn that a couple of names have been identified in the event that a parting of the ways is sooner rather than later.

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One name to have been floated is Omar Marmoush. But aside from being Egyptian and prolific, the similarities are not especially extensive, and Sky Sports understands that the Eintracht Frankfurt striker is not currently a target.

However, two Premier League stars have reportedly been watched "closely" throughout 2024, while Salah's contract situation has dragged on. One of those is Bryan Mbuemo of Brentford.

Long mentioned as one of the players in the league most stylistically similar to Salah, there's reasons to think Mbuemo could scale up his output in a better team, just as Salah once did. But at 25, he's probably only an option if Liverpool finds itself needing to make a move this summer.

After Salah admitted a new deal at Liverpool was still "far away", that could yet be the case. And while Brentford would not do business cheaply, FSG cannot expect to find someone capable of replicating even a fraction of Salah's quality without paying a sizable sum.

Like-for-like is simply not possible when it comes to Salah, who is the best player in the world right now. But proven in the Premier League over a long period, a transfer for Mbuemo would be about as shrewd as it gets.

Meanwhile, Liverpool has also supposedly been watching Antoine Semenyo at Bournemouth. This is an interesting link too.

A little less established at the very top level, he has nonetheless taken to Premier League life well with the Cherries. It has been a bright start to the current campaign, with five goals and two assists.

Neither Semenyo nor Mbuemo would have an enviable task in trying to fill Salah's shoes. But if a new contract is not agreed, these would at least be intriguing possibilities.

Liverpool.com says: Clearly, the number one priority is to get Salah to sign. The club's alternative solutions only serve to underline that in a way, with a vast gap in output and indeed quality.

However, Liverpool once took a similar punt on Salah's potential. And ultimately, rather than attempting the impossible task of replacing him directly, this is how Hughes will have to go about business when the time comes.