The number of Liverpool fans prepared to sanction Mo Salah’s exit next summer may be dwindling amid another terrific season from the Egyptian.
Should the club opt to part ways with their talismanic No.11 in the interests of capitalising on his value, one potential avenue they could go down to replace him has freshly opened.
Florian Plettenberg relays an update from Patrik Berger on X (formerly Twitter) that Donyell Malen (24) is now ‘open for a new challenge in winter or summer’.
🆕 News Donyell #Malen: The 24 y/o is open for a new challenge in winter or summer as he’s not totally happy in Dortmund. His new agency SEG is sounding out the market.
➡️ #BVB, open to let him go
➡️ Price expectation: €30-35m.Malen has a market in 🏴! @berger_pj |… pic.twitter.com/V9goAVdtso
— Florian Plettenberg (@Plettigoal) December 4, 2023
It could hand Liverpool’s recruitment team an interesting avenue, particularly with the player having been previously admired by Jurgen Klopp (dailysports).
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A fresh start in England?
Despite a promising start to the 2023/24 Bundesliga season – in which he found the net in three out of his four opening league games – minutes have since been hard to come by.
At a potential price tag ranging between £25.7m-£30m, Malen could represent an extremely high reward married with a low-risk buy.
Of course, this isn’t an area we’d wish to see Liverpool gamble with either way given the calibre of player who could be heading out of the door next summer.
In that sense, it’s reassuring to see that the Dortmund attacker’s underlying stats suggest he’s currently one of the most exciting wide men in Europe, registering in the 99th percentile non-penalty goals and xG, according to FBref.
Following a significant stint away from English football, after he departed Arsenal’s academy, perhaps it’s high time he made a return.