Ciaran Morrison

Fri 3 April 2026 19:00, UK

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Liverpool forward Mohamed Salah may be having second thoughts about moving to Saudi Arabia this summer.

That is according to ex-Everton, Aston Villa, and Aberdeen chief executive Keith Wyness, speaking exclusively to Football Insider, who thinks the conflict in the Middle East could put Salah off a move.

The 33-year-old has confirmed he will leave Liverpool at the end of the season after eight years at Anfield.

Saudi have been heavily linked with agreeing a deal to bring Salah to the nation, whose high wage demands are likely to put off European clubs.

Salah departing Liverpool is the first step in the club rebuilding their squad this summer, with manager Arne Slot likely to be sacked at the end of the season.

Saudi ‘is not an option’ for Mohamed Salah

Everton’s former chief Keith Wyness – who served as CEO at Goodison Park between 2004 and 2009 and now runs a football consultancy advising elite clubs – believes Salah should have left Liverpool at the end of last season.

Speaking on the new edition of Football Insider‘s Inside Track podcast, Wyness thinks the Saudi league is not as attractive to players due to the ongoing conflict in the region.

He told Football Insider‘s Inside Track podcast: “It should have happened last season and I think we’ve been proven right.

“There’s no doubt. Look how the world has changed. The bids that were coming in from Saudi Arabia and the performance of Salah this season show that it should have happened at the end of last season.

“For all sorts of reasons, both personally, financially and everything. Maybe even giving Slot a better chance to try and refresh the squad more. So now we’re in a position where maybe Saudi is not an option he would want to take his family to at the moment.

“We all hope the geopolitical situation’s calmed down, but they are starting to affect sport more and more. As we see, the Grand Prix’s been cancelled and different issues. You’ve got to think that players would be thinking in the Saudi Premier League right now maybe it isn’t quite as attractive as it was before.

“Certainly with Salah, who would be a very big image and certainly as big as Ronaldo in terms of the impact for that league, he’s got to be thinking, is it really the right move for me and my family?”

Liverpool regret Salah agreement

Former Manchester United chief scout Mick Brown told Football Insider that he agrees that Liverpool should have sold Salah last summer.

Brown says that the club handing Salah a new contract last season was the wrong move, and that they must learn from their mistake.

The forward has only scored 10 goals in all competitions this season, and Liverpool are set to target Yan Diomande or Michael Olise as a replacement in the summer transfer window.