Liverpool's four Mo Salah replacements ANALYSED

Liverpool have at least four names on their shortlist to replace Mo Salah. Here's what we think of each.

As things stand, Mo Salah will leave Liverpool at the end of the season. The Egyptian's contract will expire and we're yet to get positive news on a new one.

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Not agreeing on a new deal sets Liverpool an immediate and probably impossible task: replacing Salah. He's been arguably the best footballer on the planet this season, leading both the goalscoring and assists charts in the Premier League.

Finding anyone who can provide output like that is a ridiculous job. Finding a right-winger who can do it?

The only way fans would be somewhat happy is if Lamine Yamal was on his way to Anfield. He's not, though, and Liverpool will witness a downgrade in the role no matter what.

That will naturally upset a lot of people but if this is the road Liverpool want to go down, there's little to do but accept it. Who, though, could be joining as a Salah replacement?

The Daily Mail provided four names this week that the Reds have looked at. We've decided to analyse all of them - and see what to expect.

Bryan Mbuemo

In a lot of ways, Bryan Mbeumo makes the most sense for Liverpool. He plays the right position, he plays in a high-pressing team and he delivers goals and assists.

He's involved a similar amount to Salah, too. Both averaged 34 passes per 90 minutes over the last year.

On top of that, Mbeumo has improved year on year since arriving in the Premier League. His goals per 90 minutes figures have grown as such: 0.12, 0.28, 0.41 and 0.56.

His assist numbers had been very similar (0.22, 0.25, 0.28) until this season (0.12).

Mbeumo, then, is a player heading into his prime (he turns 26 this summer) and with bags of really impressive Premier League experience. So what's to worry about?

Well, firstly, the Brentford forward has been streaky. His season kicked off with six goals in seven but he's currently on a five-match stretch where his only goal involvement has been a penalty. It's the second stretch this season where he's had just a single goal involvement in five starts (the previous saw him grab an assist).

Maybe that streakiness goes away in a better team with more chances - but it's a risk Liverpool would need to take.

Antoine Semenyo

We'll start with the concerns here. Antoine Semenyo is only in his second full top-flight season. Last year he scored eight times, this season he has seven and counting.

There were two assists last season, with four in this campaign. They're good numbers without being great numbers.

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Semenyo is 25, too, so Liverpool would be hoping for a dramatic climb in output at Anfield if he were their man. For comparison, Salah averaged pretty much a goal or assist every 90 minutes at AS Roma before moving (0.95).

Then there's the not-necessarily-a-negative: Semenyo isn't strictly a right-sided player. He starts just as often from the left and that versatility a real element of his game.

Would Liverpool offer him that? He wouldn't strictly be a Salah replacement if he's also on the left and the squad would require someone else to play from the right. Again that's not necessarily a bad thing but it's a consideration.

What does work in Semenyo's favour is that things really appear to have clicked for him. The Ghanian has eight goals or assists in his last nine starts with Bournemouth. There's also the fact that Richard Hughes signed him for the Cherries and knows him well.

We're far from sold on Semenyo but if he continues his current form, we could be by the end of the season. Let's see on this one.

Jamie Gittens

Jamie Gittens is the worst player on this list. There is no question about that. Fortunately, the more important question is 'Will he end up as the best player?'.

Gittens has exploded into form with Borussia Dortmund this season, producing some incredible moments. He has seven goals and three assists in the Bundesliga, playing the equivalent of 16 full games.

They're impressive numbers given Dortmund are struggling and Gittens is still only 20. He has as many goals as Semenyo but he's five years younger.

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The trade-off there is that he'd almost certainly cost more but there's little doubt that Gittens can end up as the best of the lot. But there's massive concern here that changes everything: he plays on the left.

FBref's match logs have Gittens down as playing any significant minutes from the right on just two occasions this season. Signing him would mean a belief that he can be converted into a right-sided player or not actually viewing him as the Salah replacement at all.

Then you've got to consider Cody Gakpo's spot on the left - it starts to get very messy. Gittens is a fantastic talent but the Salah successor? We're not convinced.

Takefusa Kubo

There have been links between Takefusa Kubo and Liverpool for a very long time now. He's a player whose entire career has been uncertain, with Real Madrid signing him very early on but never really giving him a chance.

He landed at Real Sociedad in 2022 after a series of loans and has managed to find his footing. Nine goals and four assists in 22/23, seven goals and four assists in 23/24.

The big worry is that this season has seen Kubo score four goals with zero assists. It's been a downturn but one that's hard to judge as Sociedad as a whole haven't been good.

They were fourth in that first season, then sixth last season. This campaign has them sitting in 11th.

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So we wouldn't judge Kubo too harshly but Liverpool would undoubtedly be signing him on a downturn. That might mean they could snap him up for cheaper than a year ago but it also makes him a very unorthodox Salah successor.

Enough so that we can't imagine he'd be the go-to for Liverpool unless another player joined as well. Potentially another from this list.

Kubo's numbers over the years have been good without being spectacular and it means there's just too much risk involved now his form isn't keeping up with his reputation. We just can't see it.

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