As fans of all other teams plunge headlong into the smoke and mirrors of the transfer talks, Liverpool have been delighted to have one more game to play before the silly season begins. Or so they thought. Liverpool’s media day before Saturday’s Champions League final against Real Madrid was filled with the usual banalities until Mohamed Salah accidentally decided to drop a “but” so big that Sir Mix-a- Lot in stonework:
“I’m just focused on the team and I don’t want to talk about my contract, but I’m sure I’ll stay next season.”
A statement made with certainty by Salah, but which inspires anything but certainty, as it does not shed more light on its central point: next season will be the first year of a new agreement or the last of its old, and the last with the club?
The feeling of anxiety increases, as the belief is that Salah’s agreement – or lack thereof – will play a key role in the future of his colleagues, Sadio Mané and Roberto Firmino, all three without a contract in 2023. of Salah yes. it seems to confirm that FSG will not charge its star man this summer, but the intrigue now lies in whether they are more or less likely to seek a transfer fee for either of the other two.
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According to reports, Bayern Munich and PSG have already registered an interest in Mané, and it would not be surprising for clubs to make private inquiries about what kind of fee the club would consider to separate from Firmino. Mané’s public comments have been as cryptic as Salah’s, but Senegalese have at least offered a final date for speculation:
“I’ll answer after the Champions League. Stay or not, I’ll answer you after the Champions League.”
Firmino has not made a public statement on the matter, apart from saying that he is very happy with the club, but it seems that there is an acceptance that his future will be decided after that of his fellow criminals. With all the conversations seemingly set aside as the club chased the quadruple, uncertainty surrounds the three men as the transfer window opens.
A messy and insignificant 1-0 win at Turf Moor will not come to mind when we remember the highlights of the season in a campaign that has produced so many victories and so much magic. However, it can be important in the evolution of Jürgen Klopp’s team – the moment when we said goodbye to the best offensive trident in Liverpool’s brilliant history.
Salah, Mané and Firmino have played and scored since that February 13 match, but this was the last time they were selected from the start. It only happened twice more in 2021/22: a 5-0 win at Watford and a disappointing 2-2 draw with Brighton at Anfield.
After Salah’s signing in the summer of 2017 completed the trio, they produced 91 goals and 41 assists in their first season together, with most of those assists between them. This was a front line that fed on each other and fed on the success of others, copying goal celebrations and seeming unwilling to leave the field of play until everyone had scored.
They achieved this feat on eight occasions in 2017/18, and for the next two and a half seasons, it seemed that Klopp only chose eight players per game, as the “Front Three” trademark was automatic. At that time, Liverpool became world, European and Premier League champions, and Salah-Mané-Firmino became the benchmark for the perfect attack: pace, wingspan, deadly finish and telepathy. which made them almost unstoppable.
Diogo Jota’s lightning start to his career at Liverpool in 2020/21 was the first sign of a life beyond the top three, mainly because he matched Mané and Firmino enduring his worst form in front of goal with a red t-shirt. Mother Nature is undefeated, and when both men reached the age of 30, many believed that their best days were over.
Klopp claimed that his stars were simply tired instead of disappearing, in the face of a relentless football schedule and a terrible crisis of defensive injuries that left him unable to enter the battle without his top shooters. From the moment they joined until the end of last season, Firmino played 96.1% of Liverpool’s Premier League games, Salah 95.4% and Mané 88.9%. The appearance of Jota and the arrival of Luis Díaz in January 2022 allowed Klopp to relieve the pressure on his established stars, and the results have been remarkable.
The top three started this season on fire, scoring 20 goals in the top 10 Premier League games. And yet, they were no longer the three forwards. They appeared in moths only once at that time, going back years on Vicarage Road. Each man made the score for the 15th time, combining five goals of impressive quality. At the time, it certainly didn’t feel like a swan song, but the past six months have seen Jota spend two months as the best player in the Premier League, and Salah-Mané-Diaz becoming the front line, seemingly safe. to start the Champions League final if Salah is fully fit. One week is a long time in football, minus six months.
Once Mané makes his announcement after Paris, the landscape can change drastically once again. Although the three remain at the club for the next term, there are no guarantees that they will share the field. With the Qatar World Cup targeting Mané and Firmino showing the benefits of a “quality over quantity” selection approach, what was previously automatic could become a later idea.
The end of each football season is full of affectionate farewells from popular players, but it is not uncommon for fans to commemorate the end of a productive partnership. Whenever the first of Liverpool’s great gunmen falls towards sunset, whoever it is, an exception must be made for this exceptional time.
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