When he leaves Liverpool at the end of the current season, Mohamed Salah will walk away as one of the greatest players in English Premier League history. (Photo: EPA / Adam Vaughan) “We cannot replace him, he’s a special person.” These were the words of Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola as he paid tribute to one of the club’s all-time greats, Sergio Agüero, who departed the club in 2021.
Agüero walked away as one the English Premier League’s most impactful players, especially as a foreigner. Five years later, another impactful foreigner – Mohamed Salah – recently announced that he will depart Liverpool at the end of the 2025/26 season. A number of Liverpool fans will be feeling exactly like Guardiola felt when Agüero departed Manchester City.
To say Salah’s contributions at the Merseyside club were seismic would be an extreme understatement. From the first season the Egyptian winger landed in Liverpool, he announced himself as a major force to be reckoned with, scoring 44 goals across competitions for the Reds. A mammoth 32 came in the league.
/file/attachments/orphans/1153685826_823431.jpg "Mohamed Salah of Liverpool with the trophy after winning the Uefa Champions League final against Tottenham Hotspur at Estadio Wanda Metropolitano on 1 June 2019 in Madrid, Spain. (Photo: Visionhaus / Getty Images)")
That overall goal haul is the second highest from a player in a single season in the Reds’ history. Only the great Ian Rush, who scored 47 in 1983/84, has netted more in a single campaign for Liverpool.
Salah comes of age
When Salah arrived at Liverpool in 2017, there were questions about whether he could finally fulfil his potential as a Premier League player. He had arrived in England via London, having left Swiss club Basel to join Chelsea three years before he moved to Merseyside.
Salah’s time at Chelsea saw him struggle to command a place in the starting line-up, and he was twice sent on loan to Italian clubs, first with Fiorentina and then with Roma.
The latter club eventually signed him permanently in 2016, but he remained in Italy for just that season before the Reds came marching in, asking for his services. Suddenly, he could redeem his disappointing first stint in English football. As the cliché says, the rest is history.
As he embarks on a victory lap before leaving Liverpool in mid-2026, the Egyptian attacker does so as a player who helped deliver Liverpool’s maiden Premier League title at the end of the 2019/20 season.
/file/attachments/orphans/13722478_432412.jpg "Mohamed Salah and his Liverpool teammates were unfortunate that their best years coincided with a prime Manchester City side. Otherwise, they would have won much more silverware. (Photo: EPA / Adam Vaughan)")
When the Reds added a second Premier League title last season, Salah was in exceptional form. The winger set a record for the most goal contributions in a 38-game league season in England, with 47. This included 29 goals and 18 assists, showcasing his all-round skills.
Slot’s tribute
“Mo always thinks he has to prove something every three days. That hunger never stops, and that is something that I find most special about him,” Liverpool manager Arne Slot told Liverpool’s media department in a tribute to Salah.
“There have been so many good players around the world. He’s definitely one of them in the last 10 years, that everybody talks about being one of the best there is. To show that hunger every three days, that professionalism, that commitment to the club, to the team. To wanting to score again, always wanting to play – when you take him out three minutes before the end, he’s like ‘Maybe I could have scored one extra.’ That is what stands out for me,” Slot said.
“Hopefully he can make his legacy even more special in the upcoming weeks and months, where we still play for something special. But he will leave this club as a legend.
“Mo definitely deserves that the fans give him a great farewell,” he added. “If they want to do it game after game after game, I’m completely fine with that, because it usually helps players if they get the help from the fans. But it would be perfect if it’s not only about Mo.”
/file/attachments/orphans/RC297KAPPDRM_569253.jpg "Although the pair have not always seen eye to eye, Liverpool manager Arne Slot has an abundance of respect for Mohamed Salah and his contribution to the Reds. (Photo: Reuters / Phil Noble / File Photo)")
Having also won the European Champions League with Liverpool in 2019, Salah will hope he can add another gold medal from Europe’s premier club competition. Liverpool is all but out of Premier League contention for this season, with Arsenal leading the way and Guardiola’s City doggedly chasing.
However, their European prospects remain lively. Salah and his teammates face reigning Champions League winners Paris Saint-Germain in a cracking quarterfinal contest. The first leg is set for 8 April, with the second leg scheduled for 14 April.
/file/attachments/orphans/GreenSimpleProjectComparisonChartGraphiccopy_501189.jpg "MOHAMED SALAH’S RECORDS")
The two ties will allow Salah to add to his Champions League tally. The Egyptian currently boasts 50 Champions League goals for Liverpool, Chelsea and Basel. He is the all-time leading African goal-scorer in the elite European club competition, ahead of second-placed Didier Drogba, who netted 44 Champions League goals.
Although Salah has already shattered a plethora of records in England, he is just an assist short of becoming Liverpool’s all-time assist-maker in the Premier League. Salah is currently level on 92 assists with fellow Liverpool legend Steven Gerrard. He has ample matches to make the record his own. DM