Al Ittihad are prepared to go all out to try and sign Mohamed Salah from Liverpool.
The Saudi Pro League club made attempts to sign Salah earlier in the window.
The forward has been one of Al Ittihad’s top targets this summer and they are still interested in him, despite Salah’s agent Ramy Abbas Issa saying earlier in August the player was committed to Liverpool.
Salah signed a new contract at Anfield last summer and has two years remaining on his deal.
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Kaveh Solhekol assesses the chances of Mohamed Salah leaving Liverpool to join Saudi Pro League side Al Ittihad
The final decision will rest with Liverpool, who do not want to sell the forward, but one source has told Sky Sports News that Salah would like to listen to what would be on offer.
Al Ittihad have Karim Benzema, Salah’s former Liverpool team-mate Fabinho, N’Golo Kante and former Celtic winger Jota in their squad.
However, there are strong reports indicating Jota could leave the club just weeks after joining for £25m – with Al Ittihad pursuing a deal for Salah.
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The SPL window is due to close on September 7, nearly a week after the Premier League’s transfer deadline on September 1.
‘Salah is just not for sale’
Sky Sports News chief reporter Kaveh Solhekol:
“We’ve known for quite a while they want to sign Salah, and that as far as Liverpool are concerned he’s not for sale.
“When these reports started emerging a month ago that they were interested, his own agent came out on social media and said Salah was committed to Liverpool. If that wasn’t the case, he wouldn’t have signed a new contract last summer.
“That contract makes him the best-paid player at Liverpool, still has two years left to run, and Liverpool are very clear that they do not want to sell him.
“But as we’ve seen all summer, these Saudi Pro League clubs don’t take no for an answer. They have their lists of targets, and will do whatever it takes to sign those players.
“They’re not going to give up, and the Saudi window is open for several days after the window closes here. This has a really destabilising effect on Liverpool, but it’s something everyone in the game in Europe has had to get used to. The Saudi Pro League is here to stay and they have the money to try, and sometimes succeed, with buying the world’s best players.
“I think Mo Salah is just not for sale. He’s Liverpool’s best-paid player. The last thing Jurgen Klopp wants is to lose him so late in the window. Klopp came out recently and said he was unhappy with how the SPL window was open after the Premier League window closes. He was worried about the fact Saudi clubs could come in and take players away from Premier League clubs after the window was closed here, so they couldn’t replace them.
“If Al Ittihad do try to sign Salah after the window closes next Friday, Klopp’s worst nightmares will have come true.
“This is the transfer market – Saudi clubs have a different window to Premier League clubs. Al Ittihad are doing nothing wrong. They’re trying to sign a player.
“Does every player have their price? Will it get to a stage where the price is so high that Liverpool are tempted to cash in? There’s been no indication so far from the club that this is the case.
“We’ve seen time and again this summer, Saudi clubs identify targets and throw money at these targets. We’re talking about incredible sums of money, and we’ve been told some of these players who are reluctant to move are being told they’ll be given 50 per cent of their wages over the whole term of their contract up front now, tax free, to tempt them to join.”
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