Mohamed Salah's Potential Move to Saudi Arabia: Terms and Conditions

Mohamed Salah has given the go-ahead for a move to Saudi Arabia – but only on his terms – as the fallout from his Liverpool exit spills into a public row between Dejan Lovren and Jamie Carragher.

The 33-year-old’s departure was confirmed weeks ago, ending a nine-year spell in which he became one of the defining figures of the modern Liverpool era. He leaves Anfield a year before the end of his £400,000-per-week deal, after a season scarred by personal and collective turmoil.

Liverpool, still reeling from the tragic passing of Diogo Jota and a campaign that unravelled into a limp fifth-place finish, never found their stride. Performances tailed off, results worsened, and the pressure ultimately cost Arne Slot his job. Inside that chaos, Salah’s relationship with the Dutchman frayed badly.

Lovren has now lifted the lid on just how decisive that breakdown was. The former Liverpool defender, one of Salah’s closest friends in the game, has claimed that had Slot been removed earlier, Salah would not have walked away this summer. In Lovren’s view, the bond Salah once had with Jurgen Klopp was replaced by a cold, uneasy dynamic with Slot – and it proved fatal to the forward’s Liverpool future.

That chapter, though, is closed. Club and player have drawn a line under it. The question now is where Salah’s next act will unfold.

Saudi move on the table – but only under strict terms

Saudi Pro League clubs have circled for months. Salah has been a headline target for the division’s powerbrokers, who see him as both an on-pitch superstar and a global face for their football project.

Reports from Saudi outlet Marebpress now state that Salah has “granted approval” to a move to the Middle East. That does not mean a deal is done. Far from it. The green light comes with three non-negotiable conditions.

According to those reports, Salah has already received a formal offer from one Saudi club. The proposal, though, fell short of the package he was previously offered before signing his last extension with Liverpool. For a player of his profile, that simply will not do.

Any agreement, as previously outlined, is expected to be enormous – one of the biggest sporting contracts ever handed out – and potentially paired with an ambassadorial role to promote football in the country. But Salah wants more than just a paycheque.

He has, per the report, demanded an annual salary and financial benefits that reflect his status and marketing value, plus a contract of two or three years to give him stability at this late stage of his career. Short-term fireworks do not interest him.

The third condition cuts even deeper: he will only join a club with a genuine sporting project, one capable of competing for major honours rather than merely taking part. He wants a team built to win titles, not just a billboard for a league.

Until those three boxes are ticked, the move remains theory, not reality.

Lovren vs Carragher: the war of words

Back on Merseyside, Salah’s exit continues to split the fanbase. Many would have preferred to see him see out his deal to 2027, especially with Liverpool now scrambling to identify and secure a successor. Yan Diomande has emerged as the club’s primary target, but replacing Salah’s output and aura is a different challenge altogether.

The real heat, though, is coming from the pundit chairs.

Lovren has launched a fierce defence of his friend and aimed his sharpest criticism at Jamie Carragher, accusing the former Liverpool defender of crossing a line with his treatment of Salah this season.

“The way they treated him this season is not harsh. It’s disgusting,” Lovren told Winwin. “Why didn’t they talk about him like this for the past eight or nine years? Tell me… OK, one season, and then he’s the target again. There are so many other issues.”

He did not stop there. Lovren suggested some pundits lay into Salah simply to stay relevant.

“He’s being really heavily criticised. Some pundits do it just to attract attention, maybe because they haven’t succeeded in other areas of their lives, so now they need to perform well… especially Carragher, he says whatever he wants. I always said he should tell him this to his face, say all these things to Mo to his face.

“He’ll never say that. Because I know he never will, because he never said it to me. He’s talked badly about me too, but he never said that to me anyway. You know, he’s just performing on TV and he gets paid for it, so he needs to perform this way.”

It is a stinging accusation: that one of Liverpool’s most prominent voices is playing to the cameras at the expense of a club legend.

Blame, mismanagement and a broken relationship

Lovren’s criticism did not only land on pundits. He drew a clear line between Klopp’s era and Slot’s brief reign, and he placed Salah’s decision to leave squarely at the door of the former manager.

“I don’t think it’s the management (that pushed Salah to leave). I think it’s just one person, and I think it’s just the manager. They didn’t have a good relationship. Let’s put it simply,” he said.

“With Klopp, he had a really good relationship. It wasn’t always perfect, but they knew each other very well, let’s say that too, and they trusted each other, and they liked each other, and Mo gave everything on the pitch for Klopp, and Klopp gave him that trust. But (with Slot) it was the opposite. It’s that simple, and everyone knows it because when you look at the previous eight or nine seasons, he did really well.”

Lovren also suggested Salah was left exposed inside the dressing room, carrying too much of the blame as the season unravelled.

“There are other players who should also take responsibility and say, ‘yes, this is my fault’, but you know, some players never came forward.

“There was mismanagement; internally, they didn’t handle it well. They didn’t handle it well. Even if you have some problems, you have to talk about it in the dressing room, and like I said, Mo never felt that support. He was always the front-page headline, ‘Ah, it’s Mohamed Salah, don’t be surprised.’ I mean… it’s a deep-seated issue.”

So Liverpool move on without their talisman, bracing for life after Salah while the player himself weighs up the most lucrative, politically charged move of his career. Saudi Arabia is waiting, money is on the table, and the conditions are clear.

The next contract he signs will not just shape his legacy. It will say everything about what matters most to Mohamed Salah at the twilight of his prime: medals, money, or the promise of a new kingdom to conquer.