Neil Jones points to Liverpool reality that may ‘open up a new door’ for Sadio Mane in contract talks

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Neil Jones appears to have suggested that Sadio Mane’s recent success leading the line for Liverpool could ‘open up a new door’ as far as contract negotiations are concerned.

Mo Salah remains the priority for the recruitment team, with the Egyptian said to remain locked in talks with the Reds over fresh terms.

“He’s playing in a different position and it’s almost like it has just unlocked the rest of the pitch to him,” the Goal journalist told Redmen TV Plus. 

“You look at what he’s done in the last few weeks: pressing from the front to score a goal at Wembley, right foot volley, that finish on Tuesday night was unbelievable, the assist for Salah. It’s almost like it has taken him out of his box a little bit.

“I don’t reckon it changes Liverpool’s opinion of him, because I think they’ve always had the highest possible opinion of him, but it might just open up a new door and say ‘he’s our number 9’.

“I’ve always been of the opinion, I still am, that the next best thing if you can’t get him to sign a contract is to keep all three of them and just get the worth out of them, because I think the money that you would get for any of them is offset by the value that they add to the team.”

The Senegalese international’s current deal is set to expire in the summer of 2023.

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Neil’s spot on, in our minds, when he discusses the prospect of parting ways with any one of our prestigious front-three.

Though some pundits have suggested that Bobby Firmino would be the likeliest of the three to depart – with others claiming that we’d be best-served to get as much value from Salah if no further progress on contract talks is made – it would seem a foolish waste of their best years.

Of course, we’d be only getting one further season, which will be considered an especially great shame with regard to the likes of our No.11 and No.10 considering that they both seem capable of extending their careers into their 30s.

EOTK Insider Opinion: Depth is a fickle concept & it perhaps proves that Liverpool have the most underrated squad in the world

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