Liverpool are set to insert a Premier League-wide ‘special clause’ into Mohamed Salah’s new contract amid reports that he is closing in on a new deal at Anfield.
The Times’ Paul Joyce reports that there is a ‘growing expectation‘ among figures at Anfield that they will agree terms with Salah, whose current deal expires this summer.
The Egyptian signed a three-year contract back in 2022 and the saga over his future has developed ever since that deal entered its final 12 months in the summer.
Salah is already Liverpool‘s highest-paid player in history and, though no figures have yet been reported, it would not be a significant surprise to see his earnings increase yet further.
As part of his anticipated new deal, the Reds will insert a little-known clause into his contract that Premier League clubs are said to now insist on.
Former Liverpool winger Ryan Babel recalled how, in 2011, he was given a £10,000 fine by the FA for a social media post.
The Reds had lost 1-0 in an FA Cup third round tie at Manchester United in January, with the hosts’ only goal coming via a Ryan Giggs penalty that had been awarded by referee Howard Webb.
Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard was also sent off for a rash challenge on Michael Carrick.
Taking to Twitter, Babel posted a Photoshopped image of Webb in a Manchester United shirt.
Twitter was not as popularly used back then, though the post quickly gained traction and was shown elsewhere, including on mainstream news channels.
Still, Babel was hauled in front of an FA commission and fined £10,000 – for an offence that had never previously been punished in English football.
He told the ‘SDS Podcast’ in 2024: “Two days [after the post] Liverpool called me in their office, legal was there.
“They were like, ‘Ryan, the FA want to fine you and they don’t know how to deal with it’. Because it had never happened.
“I had to go to London to be in court with the FA.
“I remember sitting there and they had four older gentlemen, and they were like, ‘Ryan Babel, this has never happened before and we don’t know how to deal with it, but to make an example out of you, we have to fine you and suspend you’.
“Because of that, I think years after, they start putting in contracts, social media use – ‘If you put our club in jeopardy, we fine you’.”
The clause did, in fact, exist during the 2010/11 Premier League season, with The Secret Footballer claiming that the clause was already part of his contract at an unnamed club.
The rules relating to social media usage now falls under the jurisdiction of the FA, with their most recent guidelines reading as follows: “Cases involving media comments or comments made on social networking sites are changed under FA Rule E3(1).”
As well as detailing breaches of FA Rules E3(2), the guidelines add: “Participants are deemed responsible for any postings on their account. The fact that a posting may have been made by a third party will not necessarily prevent disciplinary action being taken.
“In addition, re-tweeting another person’s posting may lead to disciplinary action if the original comment was improper.
Image: The Football Association
“There are no set sanctions for media comments or social networking comments cases. However, financial penalties are the most usual form of sanction for these kind of cases.”
There are club-specific incidences as well.
In 2022, Chelsea striker Romelu Lukaku was fined by manager Thomas Tuchel after he told Sky Italia that was ‘not happy‘ with life at Stamford Bridge due to a change in formation.
And Metro claimed that Manchester United were planning to fine Cristiano Ronaldo a staggering £1 million after his explosive interview with Piers Morgan.
United subsequently confirmed that they were taking ‘appropriate steps’ over the interview, which ultimately led to his departure from Old Trafford via mutual consent.
