Haaland and Salah targeted: Saudi Pro League aims for ‘BOX-OFFICE’ Premier League stars
Robin Bairner
- 17 Nov 2023 10:23 GMT
- 4 min read
Erling Haaland and Mohamed Salah are the leading transfer targets of the Saudi Pro League, according to a report.
The big-spending Saudis snapped up a string of major stars during the summer transfer window, with Sadio Mane, Roberto Firmin, Ballon d’Or winner Karim Benzema and Neymar, the most expensive player ever, joining Cristiano Ronaldo at various clubs around the state.
But according to The Express, there is even more ambition shown by the Pro League to take world-class talent to its stadiums.
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“Saudis aiming for the starts: New Premier League fight to keep box-office talent,” the paper proclaims.
Manchester City striker Haaland and Liverpool legend Mohamed Salah are the two superstar players that they are aiming to sign currently.
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Salah to Saudi seems a matter of time
Of course, there is little prospect of either Haaland or Salah making a transfer in the middle of the Premier League season, especially as both their clubs are embroiled in a race for the title, but the door could be opened for both next summer.
Salah, 31, was subject to intense interest from the Saudi Pro League in 2023, with the Egypt international an icon in the Arab world for the manner in which he has led the region on the world stage in recent years. Indeed, they were even willing to break the world record transfer fee to sign him.
His draw in Saudi Arabia would be huge, and with a contract that expires in 2025, the door could be open for him to leave Liverpool after seven years in the summer. It will be a draw that is hard for him to resist, yet signing a new Liverpool deal and moving at a later date is a possibility that should not be discounted.
The case of Haaland, meanwhile, is an interesting one, with his agent Rafaela Pimenta refusing to confirm that the player will remain at Manchester City in the long term. She did indicate that the Norway international is happy where he is presently, but the tone of her speech left the door open to doubt.
The 23-year-old’s contract is up in 2027 and it is unlikely that Man City would willingly sell given the goals he is providing for them, but the world’s most valuable player is rumoured to have a release clause around the €200 million mark that clubs in the Saudi Pro League would have no problems financing.
For now, Salah looks the likelier player to make the move to Saudi next summer, but they have already shown that nothing is impossible.
