Steven Gerrard has named one player who he’d like to see Liverpool signing as a long-term replacement for Mo Salah at Anfield.
A fortnight ago, we were rocked by the Egyptian’s announcement that he’d be leaving the Reds at the end of this season after nine glorious years on Merseyside, with thoughts turning to who’ll be tasked with filling the enormous void that his departure will create.
Numerous prospective candidates have already been named in the rumour mill, and our former captain has put forward one name who could represent the closest thing to a ‘like-for-like’ replacement.
Speaking on talkSPORT on Tuesday morning, Gerrard said: “I think the concern, if you’re trying to replace Salah, in terms of like for like, I think there’s very few out there that you can go and grab. [Michael] Olise would be one, I would say, but I don’t think he’d be available.
“From experience, being around Liverpool as a player, and also since I’ve left, Liverpool’s recruitment team will have different options, and that doesn’t necessarily mean they’ll look for a like-for-like.”
The 45-year-old added: “One thing is for certain – they have to try and replace some kind of his goal involvement in terms of goals and assists, which is extremely difficult because he’s been incredible for Liverpool for many years.”
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Olise has been reliably mentioned as a player who Liverpool quite like, although James Pearce warned that Bayern Munich would be highly unlikely to sanction his exit, a concern that Gerrard echoed.
The 24-year-old is one of the few players who’d look capable of replicating the extraordinary output that Salah has accrued at Anfield, with the Frenchman returning 16 goals and 28 assists in 40 games so far this season.
That marks him out as the high-end calibre of replacement that the Reds should be seeking when it comes to replacing our legendary number 11, and even though persuading Bayern to sell could be extremely difficult, LFC must make every reasonable effort to wear down any resistance from the Allianz Arena.
If Olise proves to be unattainable, Liverpool could then push for another Bundesliga winger in Yan Diomande, although it’s been reliably indicated that convincing the RB Leipzig gem to join could be tough if we fail to qualify for the Champions League.
Replacing Salah is a near-impossible task for the Merseyside club, but it’s imperative that they sign an elite right-sided attacker who – in time – could go on to be regarded as every bit a legendary figure as the Egyptian King.
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