If Liverpool and Mohamed Salah part ways, Saudi Arabia is considered the most likely destination. But do the clubs there even want him? One official would prefer someone else.
If Mohamed Salah does indeed have to look for a new employer soon, Al-Kholood would not be an option. Ben Harburg, club boss of the current eleventh-placed team in the Saudi Professional League, has spoken out against a possible move by the Liverpool superstar to Saudi Arabia.
Salah said he had negotiated with league representatives before extending his expiring contract with the Reds until 2027 in the spring. As early as 2023, they are said to have rejected an immoral offer in the hundreds of millions from Saudi Arabia.
“There are rumors that they have already approached him once and he turned us down. These are not people who like to be rejected and try a second time,” Harburg told Reuters news agency on Wednesday at the World Football Summit in Riyadh.
He continued: “So I think even in public there is already much more skepticism about him moving to the league. He is 33 years old, has earned a lot of money and has since played well below his potential.” Harburg said he was sure “that some people like his star power, and he comes from the region. But in my opinion, he doesn’t fit into our league.”
“If I had to choose between him and Vinicius Junior, I would take Vinicius.”
The US investor, whose Harburg Group also holds shares in Spanish second division club FC Cadiz, would prefer to see someone else in the Saudi league instead of Salah. “If I had to choose between him and Vinicius Junior, I would take Vinicius.” The 25-year-old Brazilian, who is increasingly controversial at Real Madrid, could “flourish” in the 2034 World Cup host country. “I hope,” said Harburg, “that we focus more on the 25-year-old players of the next generation than on people like Salah, for whom this would definitely be the last stop of his career.”
However, it is doubtful whether Harburg also speaks for other league representatives. According to league boss Omar Mugharbel, Salah is “definitely” a transfer target for domestic clubs. Salah has sidelined himself for the time being with a public broadside in Liverpool. Whether he will remain sidelined after his ban from the squad for Tuesday’s Champions League match at Inter Milan (1-0) is likely to be announced by coach Arne Slot on Friday at the latest.