Raphinha ‘ahead of Mohamed Salah’ in Balon d’Or race after Liverpool twist
Liverpool talisman Mohamed Salah is having an emphatic season individually.
The Egyptian has produced some unbelievable numbers for the Reds this season, already netting 32 goals and providing 22 assists in 44 games across all competitions.
His talismanic presence in the attack has been one of the main factors for Liverpool’s domination in the Premier League, scoring 39 per cent of Liverpool’s goals in the Premier League.
He is also the Premier League’s highest goalscorer, leaving the likes of Erling Haaland and Alexander Isak behind despite playing wider.
Salah not the Ballon d’Or favourite?
Salah scored a brace against Southampton in Liverpool’s 3-1 victory at Anfield last weekend. In the process, he broke the record of the most goal contributions in a season for the Reds, making it 44.
The record was previously held by Luis Suarez with 43 in the 2013-14 season, and the former AS Roma forward has 27 goals and 17 assists in 29 Premier League games.
In the Champions League too, Salah’s stellar performances saw him garner three goals and four assists in nine games. However, the 32-year-old will not have a chance to improve those numbers as the Reds crashed out against PSG on Tuesday.
At this stage of the season, the Egyptian has 54 goal contributions and is one of the best performers in Europe. However, Arsenal legend Thierry Henry is unconvinced about Salah being the favourite for this year’s Ballon d’Or.
Instead, the former Barcelona man has tipped Raphinha to be the favourite to win the prestigious award.
Talking on CBS Sports, Henry said: “Raphinha is ahead, yes, with the Ballon d’Or. Because of what he is doing in the Champions League, he is on 11 goals in the Champions League.
“Mo Salah is a great contender for it, Kane is a contender and [Ousmane] Dembele, it depends.
“Raphinha is on a lot of goals with only one penalty. And I’m not saying Kane shouldn’t have penalties. Mo Salah is having a season in the Premier League that we will never see again, but I’m saying if a guy has virtually the same amount of goals as you guys score but without penalties, I’m not going to say that’s bad what you did, it’s outstanding, but this guy, I have to talk a bit more about him.”
Salah to leave Liverpool?
Salah, along with Virgil van Dijk and Trent Alexander-Arnold, are in their final few months of contract at Liverpool. There have been no concrete updates over the renewals, either.
Salah seems to be heading for an exit this summer as he has previously indicated that he wants to win one more Premier League title.
Last night, the 32-year-old became emotional over Liverpool’s exit in the Champions League, indicating that this might have been his last game for the Reds in the European competition.
The forward has been linked with a move to Saudi Arabia, but there have been no confirmations yet regarding his future.
Should Salah leave Anfield this summer, he will leave a legacy that will hardly be matched or overshadowed for decades to come.
A Balon d’Or would be the perfect end, but it may be out of reach now.