Liverpool's big striker hunt may have surprise TWIST | OneFootball

Liverpool are on the hunt for a new striker. However, this could all end in a surprise twist that no one saw coming.

It's no secret that Liverpool hope to sign a striker this summer. That's been pretty obvious since the start of the season.

Arne Slot quite plainly didn't fancy either Darwin Nunez or Diogo Jota to be his regular starting striker. Both have been far too unreliable to hold the role down.

Nunez simply doesn't score at a high enough rate given the chances presented to him. Jota just doesn't get on the pitch - he only featured in around one third of Liverpool's total Premier League minutes this season.

Luis Diaz has been an option there and a decent one, but he's clearly not a regular centre-forward. Liverpool need someone natural in the role and set out to find it in 2025.

Alexander Isak unquestionably topped the list. Newcastle United qualifying for the UEFA Champions League made it impossible to sign him, however.

There's Hugo Ekitike as an option, but Eintracht Frankfurt want €100m and Chelsea reportedly lead the race right now. Anfield Watch understands Goncalo Ramos is viewed as a potential value-for-money signing but we'll have to wait and see if that one develops.

But there is another option here and it's one that might suit Liverpool. It would certainly be a twist, though.

Mo Salah is the answer

Liverpool do have an elite striker in the squad: Mo Salah. They just never really use him there.

But Salah's record when starting centrally in attack is nothing short of phenomenal. Jurgen Klopp had a spell with the Egyptian there when using a 4-2-3-1 formation for a while and he thrived.

Per Understat, Mo Salah has started 25 games as a striker for Liverpool. He scored 23 times across those fixtures, assisting another five, and generating a frankly ridiculous 0.72xG per 90 game.

It's a position that actually suits him wonderfully - as a goalscorer. Salah isn't quite as good at the creative, link-up bit that both Klopp and Slot like.

Enter Florian Wirtz. The German is almost certainly signing for Liverpool as one of the world's best no.10s. He's about as good as it gets at 'the creative, link-up bit'.

This would also explain why Liverpool signed Jeremie Frimpong despite viewing Conor Bradley as their right-back. Frimpong is very capable of playing as a right-winger and we wonder if he's actually set to play there quite often.

Frimpong wide on the right, Wirtz as the creative force between midfield and attack, and then Salah as the primary goalscorer. It sounds good to us.

It's also a fine way to get Salah closer to goal. That could become very important as he ages and lacks the same explosiveness from the wing.

Get him central and able to finish the chances others create. We think it might just be the answer Liverpool are looking for in a very, very difficult striker market.

And hey, with Salah as a striker, maybe that's the excuse they need to keep Federico Chiesa for another season. Fingers crossed.