‘It wasn’t meant to end like this’ — Salah exit tough but inevitable
And so the long goodbye begins for the “Egyptian King” — undoubtedly one of the greatest players the Premier League has ever seen.
Mohamed Salah has worn the Liverpool shirt 435 times across all competitions. At most, he could feature around 15 more times before the season ends.
Regardless of whether Liverpool add more silverware — with Arne Slot’s side still competing in both the Champions League and FA Cup — the 33-year-old will depart having won six major trophies since arriving from Roma in 2017.
His individual accolades are just as remarkable: a record four Premier League Golden Boots and three PFA Players’ Player of the Year awards. Since joining Liverpool, no player has registered more Premier League goals (189) or assists (92).
Even moments off the pitch have captured his legacy. When team-mate Milos Kerkez recently shared an image of Salah’s trophy cabinet on Instagram, fans joked that he collects player-of-the-match awards as easily as picking items from a vending machine.
And then there are the iconic scenes on it — Salah scoring, dropping to his knees, and bowing his head in sujood — moments that have become part of Liverpool folklore.
He has scored 255 goals for the club, with only Ian Rush and Roger Hunt ahead of him on the all-time list.
Yet, for all the brilliance, it was not meant to end like this — with Salah effectively agreeing to cut short his contract and Liverpool allowing him to leave on a free transfer this summer.
Less than a year ago, he was celebrating a contract renewal at Anfield, sitting on a throne after signing a deal that was meant to keep him at the club until 2027. His previous contract had been due to expire in 2025, but after leading both the scoring and assist charts last season, Liverpool had little choice but to extend his stay.
By December, however, everything had changed.
Salah was first benched, then omitted from the squad entirely following an explosive post-match interview at Elland Road, where he suggested his relationship with Slot had broken down and hinted that figures within the club wanted him out.
Those close to Salah insist he had already planned to speak out that day, regardless of the result. His frustrations, they say, began earlier — after being left out of the starting lineup for a Champions League match away to Eintracht Frankfurt in October, a game Liverpool went on to win 5–1.
In truth, the news of his departure comes as little surprise given how the season has unfolded. Still, the timing is notable, with Salah describing the announcement on social media as the “first part of my farewell.”
He pushed for the news to be made public early, a gesture of transparency and respect toward the supporters. And the chance to leave on his own terms is, arguably, the least he deserves.
As his agent Ramy Abbas put it: “We do not know where Mohamed will play next season. This also means that no one else knows.”
