JORDAN: Liverpool must treat exceptional Salah differently to anyone else

It was a bit unconstructive and frankly unnecessary for the normally reticent Mohamed Salah to suddenly drop a few bombshell quotes about his future at Liverpool.

While I'm sure the club's hierarchy will not have been impressed by the timing of Salah's declaration of 'frustration', there is often an element of positioning and posturing in football negotiations and I would be surprised if he did not stay at the club. Anfield next season.

Unless he's completely unreasonable with wage demands, it seems like a no-brainer. He appears to want to stay and the club will calculate how much they want to keep him versus the cost of a replacement.

One of the biggest stumbling blocks seems to be the contract duration. It is generally risky for any club to give a player in his 30s more than two years as there is always an assumption of decline.

That said, you have to treat each individual case on its merits and exceptional players like Salah deserve exceptional treatment because of their ability and fitness, even at the age of 32.

With that in mind, there is every reason for Liverpool to find within the confines of their structure to get him the deal he wants.

Liverpool have always tended to generate a significant portion of their transfer spend from sales. The best examples, Alisson and Virgil van Dijk, were key figures in Jurgen Klopp's Champions League and Premier League winners, and were funded by Philippe Coutinho's £143 million move to Barcelona.

The club will be aware of the lack of resale value in offering new contracts to older players, but that may not be the case for Salah as the Saudi League loves the Egyptian even if he is beyond his prime .

While Liverpool cannot control the situation between Trent Alexander and Arnold if he wants to face Real Madrid, they can play with Salah and Virgil van Dijk, who at first glance appear to want to remain open.

Should the club believe that these two can remain at a high level both medically and performance-wise, I would sign them to a three-year contract, although four years may be too much.

You only have to think about the alternatives for Liverpool if they let Salah leave for nothing at the end of the season. Even with the significant price tag associated with meeting his salary demands, a new signing could cost up to £100 million in transfer fees alone, if you can replace the 30-plus goals in a season that would be lost if Salah would leave. annual depreciation on the balance sheet.

To avoid that circumstance, you might as well give Salah a few million extra pounds if that's what he demands. You are still ahead financially and have that Saudi exit if Slot decides in two years that he wants to regenerate without his star winger.

Given that Salah is now at zero value on Liverpool's balance sheet, having had his initial transfer fee written off in 2017, if you receive a transfer fee it will come down to the balance sheet as pure profit.

Sign the 'new Salah' now and there is no guarantee he will live up to the billing straight away. Liverpool spent a huge amount of money on Darwin Nunez as a striker. He was an unknown commodity for the Premier League and it took him time to manifest anything meaningful.

So even if Liverpool take into account the financial implications of a record pay package and a longer contract than orthodoxy suggests, they know what they are getting with Salah.

Given the way he plays and his physical toughness – he looks as fit as a flea – he looks more like a top-flight 28-year-old than his actual age. And the club would not hesitate to give a 28-year-old player longer terms.

I once made an offhand comment that he wasn't world class. I must admit that it was unwise to say that.

None of this means we should give Salah a blank check. Liverpool are not blind and negotiating does not mean saying yes to every demand. If he wants a million pounds a week because he would earn that in Saudi Arabia – it's just an example, I'm not saying that's what he wants – then a club doesn't have to agree to that.

It didn't really help Salah create the narrative that his club isn't doing what they should be doing. If he makes it impossible for them by asking too much, they must maintain order.

Arsenal were criticized a few years ago for letting Aaron Ramsey go for free. They felt his wage demands were unrealistic, and the fact he wasn't a success at Juventus or afterwards shows they were right.

Clearly, Salah is on a different level, but maybe, just maybe, those in positions of authority at football clubs know a little more than everyone else.

The power brokers at Anfield will look at the implications of everything – that is their job and their duty to protect the club. What would be the cost of losing Salah? Does Slot think he can rebuild without the Egyptian king?

He has already defied conventional wisdom by not signing a single expensive new player and inheriting a team without muttering: 'I need players I know and trust'.

It's difficult to make concrete predictions without being in the room as the conversations continue. But I suggest that it would seem very strange if Salah does not end up staying. I'm fascinated by what might be the case if he didn't.

The two English strikers who top Haaland

Erling Haaland is a phenomenal goalscorer and one of the main talking points surrounding Sunday's match between Liverpool and Manchester City.

But is he the best striker we've ever seen in the Premier League? I'm not so sure.

I would say that Harry Kane is not only a better footballer than Haaland, I think he would have scored just as many goals for Man City under Pep Guardiola.

When you look at Alan Shearer's record for Newcastle, a team that did not dominate games or competitions like City, it is as remarkable as Haaland's achievements.

The Norwegian has benefited from playing in an era where football is focused on attack and you see far fewer goalless draws than twenty years ago.

When City hit a bumpy spot, as they do, Haaland is affected just like anyone else. He has scored only twice in his last seven league matches.

But that doesn't mean he won't be the match winner this weekend. He's a shark in attack and I don't think anyone seriously believes Guardiola's team won't come out of hibernation at some point.

Why Spurs belong in the top six

Eleven English teams have won major trophies since Tottenham last won silver in 2008.

Yet they are still referred to as one of the Premier League's Big Six, and I can see why.

In terms of heritage, global support and having the best sports stadium in the country – if not the world – they are still a big club.

You would apparently need more than €3 billion to buy Spurs and that is on a different level to pretenders like Aston Villa or even Newcastle.

But while Daniel Levy scores a 10 for the economic running of his football club, they have been a major failure when it comes to winning things, with just two League Cups in the Premier League era.

Their resounding 4-0 victory at the Etihad last week underlines that they would rather have to win a major trophy this season than be able to win.

They will not always want to owe their status as an elite club to history and what happens in the boardroom rather than on the football field.

What Lampard must do this time in the championship

I thought Frank Lampard would make a very good manager. As a football operator and communicator he was excellent.

Personally, I thought he should not have left Derby County and that he should have settled there for longer. He had a good season at Chelsea, but Everton would probably have been relegated if he hadn't been sacked.

It appears things have come full circle as Lampard has been tipped to return to the Championship with Coventry City. I now have my reservations that he will make an excellent manager, but maybe he will.

One thing is certain: he had to go again to prove himself and taking a job outside the control of the Premier League is the best way.

Only this time he must keep course and distance and not be seduced by the first attractive alternative that might flutter his eyes towards him.