Mo Salah’s replacement on the right wing has been identified by Stephen Warnock as the man he would want to see at Liverpool, adding that the Egyptian is’replaceable’ at Anfield.
The Saudi Pro League is set to express interest in the 31-year-old again in 2024 despite the Reds’ rejection of an offer of £150 million from Al-Ittihad made a few weeks ago (The Mirror).
The former LFC defender mentioned Napoli winger Khvicha Kvaratskhelia as the guy that “springs to mind” when it comes to a long-term successor in attack while he was speaking on talkSPORT.
Warnock said (according to The Mirror:
“Everyone’s replaceable. I’ve said it about [Luis] Suarez, I’ve said it about [Philippe] Coutinho, and [Salah] will be replaceable in time.
“I think the big problem is with Salah, if you get a £175m offer from Saudi Arabia, that’s difficult to say no to. I wouldn’t sell him in January but maybe next season, but only if you’ve got someone else lined up. You’d have to have someone exciting lined up.
“The one player that springs to mind is Kvaratskhelia. He’s the one player you look at where you think he’s young and has potential and can play, but he’s a left-sided player. Could he play on the right?”
The Georgia winger shone for Napoli in their dominating Serie A victory last season, tallying 12 goals and providing 13 assists (Transfermarkt).
Liverpool supporters will remember his outstanding performance from the Italian team’s 4-1 Champions League victory over us last fall, when Jurgen Klopp praised the forward’s blistering speed (The Mirror).
As Warnock noted, the 22-year-old often plays on the left, but according to Transfermarkt, he has also lined up on the other wing, so the Reds boss may choose to do so if the Georgian joins them at Anfield.
However, with a contract that runs until 2027 and rumours that €100 million (£86.4 million) in proposals were made for him over the summer (Corriere dello Sport), LFC would need to fork out a large chunk of money to acquire Kvaratskhelia.
Additionally, according to Transfermarkt, he has only contributed to five goals this season, half as many as Salah has from almost the same amount of games, so Liverpool shouldn’t be in a rush to trade for the talismanic Egyptian just yet.