Report: Liverpool prepared to spend big on potential Salah successor who’s already wowed Slot

Liverpool are reportedly prepared to break the bank for a prospective successor to Mo Salah on the right flank.

Even after the expensive acquisitions of Florian Wirtz, Hugo Ekitike and Alexander Isak this year, the Reds continue to be linked with potential attacking signings for 2026, with Antoine Semenyo and Michael Olise prominent among the names being mentioned.

Another rumoured transfer target has now emerged for the Premier League champions, and it’s a player who Arne Slot already knows quite well.

Liverpool prepared to spend big on Yankuba Minteh

According to Footy-Africa (via CaughtOffside), Liverpool are prepared to pay in excess of £100m for Brighton winger Yankuba Minteh as a prospective succession plan to Salah.

The report claims that no official bid has yet been made by the Reds, although ‘insiders suggest’ that discussions between the two clubs ‘could accelerate’ in the weeks leading up to the January transfer window.

Minteh is talented but replacing Salah would be a tall order

Slot is already well aware of the 21-year-old’s qualities, having previously managed him at Feyenoord, and the LFC head coach has spoken glowingly about the Gambia international’s qualities.

The Dutchman said (via Fatu Network): “He certainly doesn’t lack self-confidence. His willingness to give everything is enormous. When we see his statistics, it is really impressive. Minteh ran more sprint metres against Ajax in an hour than many players in two games. He is incredibly fast, and he wants it so badly.”

As illustrated by statistics from FBref and in the table below, the Brighton winger ranks highly among positional peers in Europe’s five main leagues over the past year for a number of metrics, particularly standing out for his ball-carrying ability and his work when out of possession.

However, one area where the 21-year-old has plenty of room for improvement is probably the most important of all for a forward – goalscoring. He’s netted just eight times in 47 games for the Seagulls, with 23 in 101 senior career appearances so far (Transfermarkt).

Salah has scored a minimum of 23 goals in each of his eight full seasons at Liverpool, and while that output may have sharply decreased this term, it’s still an incredibly high bar for Minteh to try and emulate.

The likelihood of the Reds paying £100m for the Brighton winger is quite low, and for all his underlying qualities and scope to get even better over the next few years, he doesn’t appear to be what LFC need for now.