Arne Slot could cause the young player to blow up.
For supporters of Liverpool, the summer transfer window of 2024 will be among the most intriguing in recent memory. With the departure of Jurgen Klopp and the appointment of Arne Slot as manager, they will see a significant change in management.
After nearly ten years in leadership and eight major trophies—including the Champions League trophy in 2018–19 and the Reds’ lone Premier League triumph to date in 2019–20—Jurgen Klopp is expected to leave Anfield. He’s going out as a Premier League great from the club.
The question of whether any other players or staff will follow Klopp out the exit door at Anfield is raised by his impending departure. Pepijn Lijnders, his long-term assist coach, is leaving, as has already been reported. Next season, the Dutchman will join RB Salzburg, determined to carve out a future for himself in management.
Virgil van Dijk and Thiago, for example, may depart Liverpool when Klopp’s tenure expires next week. Van Dijk has stated in a recent interview that he will be “a part of” the “big transition” that is expected to take place at Anfield this summer, therefore he will undoubtedly stay. The Spaniard is expected to depart, as revealed by James Pearce of The Athletic.
Next Saturday, a different Liverpool great might play his farewell match while wearing a Liverpool shirt, bidding adieu to fellow club legend Klopp.
Famed winger might go from Liverpool
The man in question is Mohamed Salah, an Egyptian winger, who has been linked to leaving Liverpool when Klopp’s tenure at the team expires next Sunday against Wolves at Anfield.
Salah is without a doubt a legend at Liverpool and in the Premier League. In 348 games with the Reds, he has 211 goals and 89 assists, including 157 goals in the Premier League—though two of those were for Chelsea.
Still, back in February, former Egypt attacker Mido made the suggestion that Salah would follow Klopp out of Anfield come summertime. According to the former Tottenham striker, the Liverpool winger’s contracts to play in Saudi Arabia the next season had “been signed.”
Salah is expected to remain at Liverpool despite Klopp’s decision to depart, according to other reports from sources like Sky Sports, which state that “Liverpool are not planning to sell” Salah this summer.
If Salah were to depart Anfield this summer, the Reds would need to find a replacement while his future is still uncertain.
Liverpool may choose to elevate one of the club’s young players to replace Salah, as he has been linked to players like Real Madrid winger Rodrygo.
Liverpool’s prefabricated Salah substitute
Ben Doak, a young winger, might be the greatest internal option to take Salah’s place this summer. Over the past two seasons, Klopp has given the Scotland U21 international multiple first-team opportunities at Liverpool and holds great regard for him. In 2022, he made a transfer from Celtic to the club for an estimated £600,000.
In a recent interview, Klopp mentioned the 18-year-old Doak by name, praising his “straightforward bravery” and describing the young man as a “special boy, really confident, has something nobody else delivers really.”
In fact, Klopp has already provided Doak, a skillful dribbler, with numerous opportunities to play football with the first team. The winger has made ten appearances for Liverpool thus far, including three in the Premier League in the last two seasons.
Doak has been quite effective for the academy even if he hasn’t scored a goal or assisted a teammate for Liverpool yet.
The 18-year-old feels like he will soon score for the first team after tallying 11 goals and dishing out eight assists at the youth level. In fact, he feels primed to soar under Slot’s leadership—another visionary coach.
Liverpool’s decision to spend the reported £85.7 million on Rodrygo may be a wise one, but they would be better off allocating the funds if they put the development of the electric Doak first. The Reds might recruit a less expensive player, whom they could phase out when Doak establishes himself as a more reliable first-team alternative, rather than signing the Brazilian.
Though it won’t be easy for the young Scot to replace Salah, he could not be far from being ready to play regularly for the first team. If Slot gives him the opportunity to prove himself, Liverpool may have a ready-made Salah substitute just waiting to take the world by storm.