Mohamed Salah, the Egyptian international who has been a goal-scorer since joining from AS Roma, has been fulfilling his role as an ace with goals and assists despite being just shy of 32 years of age, but his physical decline has not been hidden.
He no longer has the speed and dribbling acumen of his heyday, and he is almost never seen passing the left-back. With rumours of positional changes in Arne Slott’s regime, a generational change in right wingers is an issue that must be addressed.
Like Egyptian King, PSV Eindhoven’s Johan Bakayoko, a left-winger, is the leading candidate, but German newspaper Sport Bild reports that Mainz forward Brajan Gruda, who is gaining recognition in the Bundesliga, is also on the list.
In addition to the Reds, the paper suggests that Aston Villa and Newcastle United from the Premier League, as well as Borussia Dortmund and Bayer Leverkusen from Germany, are also interested and could make moves for him in the transfer market this summer.
An attacking midfielder in his own right, he has scored four goals and provided three assists in 29 games this season.
He handles the ball well with his left foot, cuts in after flowing down the right wing, and is accurate with his shots and passes, and made his debut for the German Under-21 national team in July 2023, and has the potential to follow in the footsteps of Florian Wirtz and Jamal Musiala.
In total, he has only played 31 games for Mainz and is assigned to the promising youngster slot rather than the immediate starter. However, there is a chance he could break through at a new club and become a player like Chelsea midfielder Cole Palmer this season.
Will Liverpool be serious about acquiring a promising talent who could be the next generation of German players…?