As much as they won’t want to face reality, Liverpool need to start thinking about how they’re going to replace Mo Salah.
The Egyptian isn’t getting any younger, he’s heading into the final year of his contract and these links to Saudi Arabia just aren’t going away.
Replacing Salah is certainly an unenviable task, but it’s one Liverpool are seemingly taking on head-on.
Indeed, according to Graeme Bailey, speaking on the Talking Transfers Podcast, the Reds are already looking at one option in the shape of Athletic Club’s Nico Williams.
Liverpool looking at Williams
Bailey shared what he knows about the winger.
“Liverpool are one of the clubs looking at him. Let’s not beat around the bush, Liverpool are doing their homework on potential replacements (for Salah), and Nico Williams would tick every box for Liverpool. If you’re in the Liverpool front three now, Jurgen Klopp would love to have that front three interchanging and playing anywhere, and Williams is one of those players,” Bailey said.
Williams has the right attributes
Nico Williams is far from the finished product, but he has the right attributes to be a star for Liverpool.
To begin with, you have to talk about Williams’ pace. At the World Cup, he was clocked as being even faster than Kylian Mbappe, and that is a huge weapon that he’s never afraid to unleash.
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He also has fantastic dribbling ability and awareness, and while it’s fair to say that his finishing needs a lot of work, Salah himself wasn’t all that prolific when he was Williams’ age.
The raw attributes are there, and with the right finetuning and coaching he could well become a star for a team like Liverpool.
This is certainly a situation to keep an eye on in the coming months as Liverpool perhaps start to plan for post-Salah life.