Former Liverpool star Danny Murphy has concerns about Mohamed Salah’s future at the club amidst the uncertainty surrounding his contract.
The Egyptian is out of contract in the summer of 2023 and talks over an extension have dragged on through the current season.
At 29, Salah wants to obtain one last big contract after scoring 155 goals across five seasons at Anfield.
The Reds would have to break their wage structure to retain Salah, who has been linked with Barcelona, per the Liverpool Echo.
According to Murphy, who spent seven years with Liverpool, the protracted contract negotiations are a sign that Salah could leave Merseyside either this summer or the next.
“I really hope he does [stay] for obvious reasons because he’s a wonderful player,” Murphy told TribalFootball.com, on behalf of The Punters Page.
“He’s been absolutely sensational and exceeded everyone’s expectations.
“The goals he brings is very hard to replace and very expensive, so I hope he does stay.
“My gut feeling is that if he’s going to sign, then he would have done it by now.
“I hope I’m wrong at that, but maybe he has different aspirations, I don’t know this, but maybe he has different aspirations of a different challenge.
“It’s always hard to try and put yourself in the mindset of somebody else because everyone has a different upbringing.
“What team he loved as a child, what ambitions he had.
“I only ever wanted to play for Liverpool and if Mo Salah was a scouser then I’d be saying he’ll stay.
“But he’s not and we don’t know what he’s thinking or what his agent or support network is saying to him.
“I’m starting to get worried that it hasn’t been done, but sometimes these negotiations can take a long time to settle.”
Salah isn’t the only Liverpool star entering the final year of their respective contract. Sadio Mane and Roberto Firmino, the other stars in Liverpool’s revered triumvirate, will also be out of contract in 2023.
And Murphy is concerned about how Jurgen Klopp will cope without their goals moving forward, despite the presence of fresh faces such as Luis Diaz and Diogo Jota.
“The longer it goes on, the more worried I am and it’s the same with Sadio Mane.
“I think they both have this wonderful durability; they play all the time and never look tired; it’s an unbelievable number of games the two of them have played since they joined.
“Although there’s options for rotation in Diaz, Firmino, Harvey Elliot and Curtis Jones; I just think it would be very difficult to replace Mo Salah’s goals.
“Fingers crossed he signs, but the longer it’s going on the more cautious I am about him signing.”
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