Transfer Truth: 'Surprised' £11m star reveals the real reason LFC deal collapsed

There are several conflicting accounts of how Liverpool lost out on the chance to sign Egyptian star Mohamed Salah during the disastrous January transfer window. Ian Ayre claims that Salah 'didn't want to come to LFC', and his Agent insists that the Reds dragged their feet for 2.5 months, which ultimately sabotaged the deal. Which is correct? In a new interview today, Salah himself has given his side of the story.

Here are various accounts of what happened:

Ian Ayre

“We won’t overpay for players, but when the right player is available for the right deal and wants to come here, they will come here. When it comes to transfers, you win some and you lose some, but it won’t be for a lack of ambition on our part.”

Sacha Empacher (Salah's Agent)

“It was a long and fair negotiation with Liverpool, but it lasted two-and-a-half months - too long. Both clubs [LFC and Basel] could not agree on terms. When Chelsea contacted Basel, he was happy and took his chance.”

Brendan Rodgers

"It's the construction of the whole deal, not only with the player and the agent but also Basel. It was deemed in this case that we couldn't do a deal. If we can the club will do everything possible to match the value of the player. If they end up going to another club that is difficult to take"

In an interview with BeIN Sports last night, Salah explained what happened with the Liverpool deal (the video is in Arabic):



Sports site 'Here is the City' has shamelessly misrepresented Salah's comments, claiming that he stated the following:

"I cannot declare how much they offered in October, perhaps the Basel management can provide such information, but they laughed when they received that offer"

This is totally inaccurate. As I always do when I come across a hitherto untranslated interview, I paid a professional to translate Salah's comments, and this is what he actually said:

"There was talk about moving to Liverpool, and I knew that I would receive good offers from many clubs. Frankly, I was surprised when the offer came from Chelsea because there was no contact between me and them. The offer came to the club [Basel] directly, and administration informed me that Chelsea wanted to sign me"

Quite how 'Here is the City' came up with their version is anyone's guess, and given the translation, I just don't see how the claim that Basel 'laughed' at LFC's offer can be construed as anything other than a blatant fabrication.

Made up quotes aside, for me, the key question remains: If LFC were unwilling to pay the required fee - which, according to the BBC, The Independent, and the Guardian, is an eminently affordable £11m - why waste two-and-a-half months 'negotiating'? Why not just switch to a different transfer target?

When all is said and done, though, Liverpool's season has not suffered as a result of failing to sign Salah, but he is clearly a good player, and once he's adapted to the Premier League, his £11m transfer fee may prove to be a major bargain.

Author: Jaimie K