Liverpool's Salah replacement AGREES transfer - Romano

Tom Weber

Updated: 1 Feb 2025 09:59 CST
3 min read

Mohamed Salah, Liverpool, 2024/25 — © IMAGO

Rayan Cherki, the man prominently tipped to replace Mohamed Salah at Liverpool, has greenlit a transfer to Borussia Dortmund, according to Fabrizio Romano.

Article continues under the video

The Reds still face the threat of losing their Egyptian King for nothing at the end of the season as Salah has yet to put pen to paper on a contract extension.

Unsurprisingly, then, Liverpool have been linked with a host of potential replacements for the in-form 32-year-old, with the name of Cherki often associated with a move to Anfield.

The Olympique Lyon homegrown has massively improved this season after a couple of down years and is determined to take the next step in his career.

He already wanted out in the summer, but no transfer materialised and he instead signed a one-year contract extension until 2026 to avoid a Salah situation. However, as part of that agreement, it was stipulated that he would be allowed to leave if a club put €22.5 million on the table.

Dortmund beat Liverpool to Cherki

Now, it appears that one side will indeed shell out the necessary fee to sign him. That club, though, will not be Liverpool but Borussia Dortmund. In fact, the Black and Yellow have already received the green light from Cherki for the deal to go through.

Dortmund were one of the clubs in talks to sign the Frenchman in the summer, but at the time, head coach Nuri Sahin ultimately decided that his team didn't really need another attacking midfielder.

The situation has now dramatically changed after a dire season to date. Sahin has been sacked and will be replaced by Niko Kovac on Sunday, with the new boss having already given his blessing to the signing of Cherki.

There are still some details to be clarified, according to Fabrizio Romano, but Cherki has become Dortmund's top target for the final days of the window and there is optimism that a deal can be struck.