Manchester United legends Gary Neville and Paul Scholes have disagreed over Mo Salah’s future at Liverpool, amid continued speculation regarding the forward’s contract situation.
The Egypt international has started the new campaign in blistering fashion, having already scored nine goals in all competitions this season, including six in the opening seven Premier League games to put Jurgen Klopp’s side firmly in the mix for the title.
Having scored 134 goals for the club since joining from Roma in 2017, the 29-year-old has been vital to the team’s recent success, while he’s also established himself as arguably one of, if not the best player in the English top-flight.
Despite his importance to the Merseyside club, Salah faces an uncertain future at Anfield with just under two years remaining on his existing deal, leading to speculation that he could be set to depart in the near future.
There have seemingly been discussions over extending his current contract, although it remains to be seen whether Liverpool are willing to break their current wage structure in order to hand him a bumper new deal and make him one of the highest earners in the top tier.
Amid the ongoing speculation, former Manchester United captain Gary Neville has weighed in with his opinion on the player’s future, admitting that he believes Salah will be tempted by the prospect of testing himself at the likes of Barcelona and Real Madrid.
“I don’t think he will stay at Liverpool for the rest of his career,” Neville said at Sky Sports’ Overlap fans’ forum. “It’s my personal view. It’s always been that view but I could be wrong.
“The Premier League would be weaker if he left. I just think you look at someone like Cristiano Ronaldo, David Beckham, Kylian Mbappe, it’s not all about the money.
“There’s a project and there’s something they have to achieve in their lives. They have to play at certain clubs, they have to go and experience certain things.
“I think Salah’s got to experience Real Madrid, the Bernabeu – Real Madrid are going to come back, by the way.
“I know it’s not great at the moment at Barcelona and Madrid but Salah is similar to those I’ve just mentioned, I think he has to have that on his CV at the end of his career.
🏟 9 games
⚽️ 9 goals
🅰️ 3 assistsMo Salah's consistent brilliance shows no sign of slowing down this season ✨ pic.twitter.com/yhEw7ctpcU
— Football on BT Sport (@btsportfootball) October 15, 2021
“I think he’s done an unbelievable job at Liverpool. I’ve just always felt he wants a Paris [Saint-Germain], a Real Madrid, a Barcelona and I think he’ll go and get it.
“But I might be wrong.”
His former teammate Paul Scholes disagreed on the matter, however, as he questioned why the prolific forward would want to leave the ‘best league in the world’, particularly amid the ongoing problems at both the Nou Camp and the Bernabeu.
“They [Barcelona and Real Madrid] are not in as high esteem as they were two or three years ago,” Scholes said.
“If he wants to be the best player on the planet, he has to stay at Liverpool. He has to stay in England.
“The best players are here, it’s the best league in the world now. It’s got the three best coaches in the world, with the best teams.
“So if he wants to be the best player on the planet, he has to stay here and Liverpool have to pay him.”
