Michael Owen fully expects to sign a new contract at and says the superstar will go either ‘sideways or down’ if he decides to leave Anfield.
The Egypt forward, who will be out of contract in the summer of 2023, is currently .
Salah has but insisted his future is in Liverpool’s hands, while manager Jurgen Klopp is unsure if his player will put pen to paper on a contract extension as .
The 29-year-old has enjoyed five extraordinary seasons at Anfield, scoring 153 goals in 239 games and helping Liverpool win both the Premier League and under Klopp.
Former striker Owen told : ‘I’d be very surprised if Mo Salah didn’t sign with Liverpool. What are the options at the moment?
‘You are only going either sideways to Manchester City or down anywhere else because there is no-one else as good as these two teams in the world at the moment.
‘Let’s give everyone time because these things don’t happen overnight.
‘You are talking about one of the biggest clubs in the world and one of the biggest players in the world and that player is about to sign the biggest contract of his life.’
While former Liverpool star Owen wants Salah to sign a new deal at Anfield, he insists the Premier League club cannot cave into every player’s demands.
He added: ‘I think it’s entirely normal that negotiations can drag on a little bit. You can’t give players what they want. The whole game would be a disaster if that was the case.
‘Liverpool have got to run it as a business. They can’t, of course, give any player what they want because if you do then there are lots of other players in the squad that could be knocking on Jurgen Klopp’s door saying, “well, hang on a minute, if he’s on this then I should be on that”. Then the whole structure they’ve built so well over the years would fall apart.
‘I’m sure Liverpool are very sensible, I’m sure Mo Salah and his representatives are all very sensible and understand that.
‘It’s just a case of them finding the middle ground and, hopefully, everybody will find that quite soon.
‘Mo Salah has got to be thinking about the chances of success in the future – if he’s thinking along those lines then Liverpool ticks that box. It’s just a question of whether they tick the box financially as well.’
Salah has scored 28 goals and made 10 assists this season to help Liverpool challenge for the Premier League title and .
Liverpool could secure more silverware after , where they will face title rivals Manchester City.
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