Liverpool are seemingly engineering themselves to the front of the queue to sign Karim Adeyemi amid heightening speculation over Mohamed Salah’s future at Anfield.
The Egyptian star has proved one of the best signings in Liverpool’s history. Costing a bargain £36.9m from Roma in summer 2017, Salah has rifled in 153 goals in just 243 appearances for the Reds. His tally includes a seismic 28 goals in 40 appearances this season – a tally made all the better by his 11 assists too.
However, with just 14 months left to run on his Anfield deal, Liverpool and Salah are at a critical junction. Talks over a new deal are yet to see an agreement reached; that’s despite claims Liverpool are ready to offer him £400,000 a week.
That salary will comfortably make him the Reds’ highest earner of all time. However, rumours over his future refuse to go away. And until the deal is signed and sealed, speculation over his future – and Liverpool’s transfer plans – will continue to rage.
Now, according to Sky Deutschland, Liverpool are holding advanced talks over a deal for Adeyemi in case Salah departs.
The 20-year-old has emerged as one of European football’s top upcoming talents after a brilliant season with RB Salzburg. The Germany striker has 20 goals in 38 games to his name so far – and 30 from 88 appearances overall.
Tipped as the next big thing off the Salzburg production line, the Austrian club are seemingly willing to sell the striker this summer.
He’s reportedly on Borussia Dortmund’s radar as they look to repeat their Erling Haaland trick. The Norway striker moved to the Westfalenstadion in January 2020 for a bargain fee – and has not looked back.
Now tipped for a mega move this summer – most likely to Manchester City – Dortmund see Adeyemi as his perfect replacement.
However, despite negotiating a £35m package, they are yet to agree personal terms for the striker.
As such, they report Liverpool are ready to hijack the deal and step in to bring him to Anfield.
They claim talks between the two parties on gathering pace and that Adeyemi is reportedly leaning towards a move to Merseyside.
Earlier this week, Bayern Munich were also reportedly in the hunt for Adeyemi. They are seemingly looking at the 20-year-old amid doubts over the long-term future of Robert Lewandowski.
Karim Adeyemi a strong option for Liverpool
Regardless of whether Salah signs, Liverpool may still make their move for Karim Adeyemi.
The Reds are preparing for the departure of cult hero Divock Origi. He looks likely to join AC Milan this summer on a free transfer.
In addition, Liverpool also have some thinking to do over Sadio Mane and Roberto Firmino. The duo, like Salah, are also out of contract in summer 2023 and one, if not both, may be allowed to depart this summer.
Salah insists talks over his new deal are ongoing but cannot yet say what his future holds.
“I can’t say yes; I can’t say no,” Salah said.
“I’ve said a million times before about what I want, but I can’t go deep into the contract now. I can’t go into the news about my contract now, because the team needs to win.
“There is not much I can say, honestly what can I say. There are many things people don’t know about it. I can’t be selfish. We are in the most important period for the team.
“So I just have to talk about the team, focus on what’s important for the team. Hopefully we are going to be more optimistic and see what will happen (with the contract).”
Klopp, meanwhile, has explained why there is no issues with Salah and why he expects the forward to enjoy a massive end to the season.
