New Liverpool head coach Andoni Iraola has officially began work at AXA Training Centre this week with plenty of work to do. One of the biggest challenges facing the coach and recruitment staff will be replacing club legend Mohamed Salah.
While the Egyptian King's form drastically declined last season, the year before he netted 29 times in the triumphant Premier League campaign, the key reason why Arne Slot's side managed to win the title for record eualling 20th time.
In total, Salah scored 257 goals for the Reds, a tally only bettered by legends Ian Rush and Roger Hunt in the club's entire illustrious history. Thus, it will be frankly strange seeing the Reds line up without him, hence why replacing him will be far from easy, and Iraola is certainly well aware of this fact.
How Andoni Iraola plans to replace Mohamed Salah
"I think it’s one of the challenges when I arrived… I think we cannot expect to sign a winger that is going to like replace Mo Salah because otherwise we are preparing him to fail almost. I think obviously we need someone in that area but probably will have different skills. He can maybe complement the team in another way and we are working on it definitely!"Andoni Iraola
In this interview with StanSport, Iraola is clearly under no illusions that finding a Salah replacement is a near-impossible task. The quote "we [would be] preparing him to fail" hits the nail on the head. If someone arrives and is labelled the new Salah, they're likely to be a disappointment, considering the Egyptian scored 32 Premier League goals during his first campaign on Merseyside.
Nevertheless, reinforcements will be required. VÃctor Muñoz has arrived from Osasuna for £34.5 million, but expecting a 23 year old who has only ever scored six senior La Liga goals to be the new Salah is clearly unrealistic.
With Hugo Ekitiké sidelined long-term, Alexander Isak, Cody Gakpo, a potentially departing Federico Chiesa, teenager Rio Ngumoha and the returning Harvey Elliott are the current forward options, which just isn't enough to challenge for the biggest trophies is it?
So, who might be the Salah successor? Well, their top target appears to be Bradley Barcola of Paris Saint-Germain. Ben Jacobs of Give Me Sport reported on Thursday that the Reds are "more active" than other clubs, specifically Arsenal, in their pursuit of the French international, adding that the Ligue 1 champions "could still become open to a sale" for a player they value at around £116 million.
Meantime, Alex Crook of TalkSport has labelled him the Reds "dream target", with Fabrizio Romano adding that "the interest is strong" in the 23 year old. Barcola though throughout his career, at Lyon, PSG and the national team, has almost always played off the left, which raises all sorts of interesting questions. There would still be a huge Salah-shape void on the right-flank while, considering how much money he would cost, Barcola would usurp Cody Gakpo and Muñoz in the pecking order.
Therefore expect Liverpool to be very active in the transfer market across the coming weeks, with plenty of work to do.
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