Micah Richards has revealed it was always Mohamed Salah’s dream to play for Liverpool.
The pair briefly played together at Fiorentina in the second half of the 2014/15 season when Richards was on loan from Manchester City and Salah enjoyed a temporary move from Chelsea. He returned to Stamford Bridge that summer and then, after two years at Roma, ended up at Liverpool – where he continues to break records.
According to Richards, that was always Salah’s preference and, ever eager to remind TV viewers that he shared a dressing room with one of the present day greats, the pundit again praised his former team-mate in the wake of his brace against Southampton on Saturday.
“Salah, we talk about him so many times – he’s breathtaking. When I say he’s breathtaking it’s not because he has a great game all the time, but he scores, he’s clinical and he punishes you all the time,” Richards said on BBC’s Match of the Day. “I remember when I was at Fiorentina with him, he always said his dream was to play for Liverpool and he’s living out his dream now and he’s doing amazingly well.”
Salah’s two goals in the 3-1 win over Southampton saw him move up to 27 goals in the Premier League this season, just nine short of Erling Haaland’s all-time record with nine games remaining. He’s also three assists away from equalling the record of 20 set jointly by Thierry Henry and Kevin De Bruyne, while his 44 goal involvements in the league this term has equaled the all-time record. Therefore, he needs to register just one goal or assist in the final nine matches to set a new league high.
(Image: Liverpool FC, Liverpool FC via Getty Images)
It’s why talk of the Ballon d’Or feels genuine, especially with Salah likely to win the Premier League and still has a chance of claiming winners’ medals in the Champions League and Carabao Cup.
The Egyptian also moved up third on Liverpool’s list of all-time top scorers on Saturday and now sits 42 off Roger Hunt in second. It’s a tally Salah should catch, if he remains at the club beyond this summer, which remains the big uncertainty hanging over both the player and Liverpool. Richards comments, demonstrating Salah’s desire and commitment to Liverpool will only boost hopes that he will pen a new deal at Anfield.
