The Saudi Minister of Sports, Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki Al-Faisal, revealed the reason behind the failure of Mohamed Salah’s transfer to Al-Ittihad in the summer of 2023.
The Egyptian international was among the most wanted in Al-Ittihad last summer, and it was said that the player agreed in principle to move to the Jeddah Tigers, but the deal was not completed in the end.
In a media interview, the Saudi Sports Minister attributed the reason for Salah’s failure to join Al-Ittihad to two reasons.
Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki Al-Faisal said, “Al-Ittihad wanted Salah on loan for one season for an astronomical amount, even compared to Neymar, Ronaldo, and Benzema.”
He also added, “We can only contract with Salah through his club because his contract is still valid there, and that is why we contacted Liverpool.”
He concluded, “Liverpool said decisively that it would not give up on Salah, and the cost of contracting with him on a one-year loan was also very high.”
Despite reports that Saudi clubs will try again to sign Salah this summer, all indications point to the Egyptian international continuing at Liverpool until the end of his contract in the summer of 2025.
