“Very Keen To Stay.” – Paul Gorst Says ‘World Class’ Is ‘Desperate’ To Remain At Liverpool | OneFootball

Liverpool head into this week’s international break in a buoyant mood following their convincing 3-0 victory over Manchester United last Sunday. The Reds have enjoyed a perfect start to life under Arne Slot, achieving maximum points in the Premier League and are yet to concede a goal.

The only potential sour note to emerge from the game came during Mo Salah’s post-match interview with Sky Sports. Salah continued his impressive goalscoring streak at Old Trafford, having notched 10 times in his nine appearances there. He told Sky’s Dave Jones, “Coming to the game, I was saying, ‘Look, it could be the last time,’” and revealed that the LFC hierarchy are yet to approach him over a contract extension. This means that if an offer is not forthcoming, the 32-year-old will be leaving the club next June.

The Liverpool Echo’s LFC correspondent Paul Gorst went some way to allaying fan fears in his latest piece, revealing via ‘numerous sources’ that Salah is ‘desperate’ to extend his Anfield career.

On the latest episode of our Journo Insight show, we asked Paul for his thoughts on Mo’s contract renewal.

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Paul said:

“I just took it to mean him putting a little bit of pressure on the club… it’s in your court now, FSG, LFC, whoever it may be.

“Once I’d watched it back in context with Daniel Sturridge, chatting to a teammate, I think his guard came down a little bit more as a result of that.

“Salah is very keen to stay, I think. Like we say, desperate to stay. He’s communicated that to people within his inner circle, and colleagues on the national stage.

“Everyone I spoke to from various areas, people who knew each other and whatever else, the message was the same – that Mohamed wants to stay.

“All things are pointing towards Mohamed Salah [being] very, very keen to stay at Liverpool for the long term. Now, I guess, it’s a case of what do the club have up their sleeve?

“In Salah’s case, he just turned 32 in June. Conventional wisdom is that you don’t produce your best football once you’re around that age, and I think the data will back it up for hundreds of players across Europe.

“I still think he’s got easily two, three, four years at this level now, and it’d be a massive shame if they weren’t at Liverpool.

“Certainly, [Michael] Edwards is expected to be involved. Does Mike Gordon come back into the fold to deal with this one? What’s the input of John Henry, and Tom Werner? I think this is a contract that almost goes above the sporting director with Richard Hughes. Obviously, he will be involved, as will Arne Slot.”

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REDMEN REACTS

Mo Salah has silenced doubters over his form and fitness with three goals in as many games so far this season. Having declined the opportunity to play in the Olympics with Egypt, Salah – hailed as ‘world-class’ by Roy Keane for his Old Trafford exploits – was able to have an extended rest over the summer, appearing reinvigorated and somewhere close to his best. Whilst Michael Edwards and FSG have achieved great success using a data-driven model that has a genesis as far back as the ‘Moneyball’ era in Major League Baseball, an exception simply must be made for Mo. His injury and subsequent loss of form last season is one of the only dips he has been through in an unbelievably consistent Liverpool career. If his representatives would accept a two-year extension, one should be put on the table sooner rather than later. Hughes and Edwards would have to be Nostradamus to accurately predict a Fabinho-style decline occurring just after Mo’s current contract expires next June. Karim Benzema and Robert Lewandowski are just two recent examples of strikers notching career-best figures in their mid-thirties. Get the chequebook out!