Mohamed Salah was not Jurgen Klopp’s first-choice target back in 2017, the German wanted to sign Julian Draxler instead but the player turned down a move to Anfield – that’s according to David Lynch of the Evening Standard.
The Egyptian arrived from Roma that summer in a deal reportedly worth £37.8m (via Transfermarkt.co.uk) but some of the club’s supporters have been surprised to learn that he wasn’t the former Borussia Dortmund boss’ preferred option. Here is how they’ve responded to the report.
Thank you Julian??
— George ? (@SeventySixRole) April 11, 2020
Well thank god
— Rizwan (@R13_DC) April 11, 2020
Thank God for that??
— Mohamed Jamal (@Mohamed97098377) April 11, 2020
Funny how things turn out
— . (@SixtySixRole) April 11, 2020
Did Liverpool dodge a bullet by not signing Draxler at the time?
Yes
No
Thank god for that then ?
— Carl Coffey (@CarlCoffey12) April 11, 2020
Tank God we did not. It would have been a disaster.
— Udensi isaac (@Udensiisaac) April 13, 2020
Thank God for that
— BozleyRafa (@BozleyR) April 11, 2020
Wow
— Jenny Galliart (@GalliartJenny) April 11, 2020
That would’ve been his biggest mistake.
— AB Rehman (@MozizSarif) April 11, 2020
What do we think?
There appears to be much relief amongst this group of supporters that it was indeed Salah who arrived on Merseyside rather than Draxler. The 26-year-old has only made 11 Ligue 1 appearances for Paris Saint-Germain this season in which he’s provided five assists but is yet to contribute a goal.
A world cup winner with Germany back in 2014, the player’s average performance rating in the French top flight currently stands at 6.93/10 compared to Salah’s which is currently 7.45/10 in the Premier League. In conclusion, it seems Klopp got the right man in the end, albeit not initially intentional.