Saudi sports minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki Al Faisal revealed in details about the transfer of Liverpool forward Mohamed Salah, which failed to materialise last season.
According the sports chief, Al-Ittihad wanted to sign the 32-year-old for an “astronomical” fee — however, the Premier League giants were unfazed by any attempt.
The Egyptian, who is the Reds’ record top flight goal scorer, was heavily touted to make the move as the Saudi Pro League continues their system of recruiting the game’s top stars.
Cristiano Ronaldo was the first of a list of notable stars to move to the Saudi top flight after Al-Nassr pulled off a monumental signing in January 2023, former Real Madrid captain and Ballon d’Or winner Karim Benzema then followed suit as compatriot N’Golo Kante moved to Al-Ittihad and Al-Hilal signed Brazilian superstar Neymar from Paris Saint-Germain.
The Saudi Sports Recruitment Program is overseen by the sports minister and is responsible for contracts.
“We received a statement‮ ‬from the club that there is a desire to sign Mohamed Salah. The amount was astronomical of course,” he told the Thmanyah podcast.
The sports minister further explained that the amount in question was heavy even compared to the transfers of Ronaldo, Neymar, and Benzema.
“The deal was for a one-year loan. Salah’s contract was valid [with Liverpool], and therefore we cannot negotiate with him without returning to the club,” he added.
“We inquired through the [Sports Recruitment] program with the club itself whether there is a desire to dispense with Mohamed Salah and they told us no… and this closed the matter decisively because the club does not want to let him go.”
Salah, who netted 25 times in 44 games in all competitions for Liverpool last season, has a contract until 2025 at Anfield.
