Back in the hazy days of 2017, it took Mohamed Salah only a few months to be crowned the Egyptian King of Anfield.
The winger, who arrived on Merseyside that summer for £34.3 million after a brief spell as Roman Emperor, scored a sensational 44 goals in his debut season, quickly sparking the flames of Jurgen Klopp 's still-burning reign. As the saying goes, "whoever controls the king, controls the kingdom." Right now, though, Liverpool can't.
The Reds find themselves this summer two trophies stronger, but with the weight of Salah's future pushing down on them. The 29-year-old, for all of his good work in the 2021-22 campaign, has been somewhat of a tyrant for the Anfield bigwigs over the past year.
Despite stating that he'll be sticking around for another term ahead of their agonising Champions League final defeat to Real Madrid in May, Liverpool chiefs and supporters alike remain under no illusions that his declaration is hardly definitive response to the looming unanswered question: will he stay or will he go?
That's because by the time next season comes to an end, Salah's current deal will have expired and he'll be able to leave on a free transfer. His contract saga has been a rare blot on Klopp and Co.'s campaign, rearing its head every so often and forcing the Reds boss to frequently bat away questions from journalists in tedious press conferences.
Mirror Football has exclusively reported that none other than Barcelona have promised to sign Salah next summer for free, offering him the kind of bumper wages which he's currently demanding on Merseyside. The recent proposal has prompted him to make a U-turn on his future, having previously told friends that he was ready to commit himself to Liverpool by signing a new deal. But links with a move to Spain are nothing new, in fact, as the former Chelsea flop has long flirted with the idea of a venture to LaLiga.
In the space of four months last term, Salah gave two exclusive interviews to Madrid-based newspaper Marca, one whose links to Real Madrid can't be ignored. Given that elite footballers rarely give one-on-one interviews, his decision raised eyebrows back home, where he claimed his future was 'out of his hands'. "It's not up to me," Salah declared. "We'll see what happens."
SPORT, meanwhile, claim that their local club, Barcelona, and cash-rich Paris Saint-Germain are Salah's dream moves if he were to leave Liverpool, where he allegedly has 'no intention' of penning a new deal.
15 months since his last sit-down with the Spanish outlet, nothing crucial has happened. A war of words between his agent and Klopp has raged, whilst the man himself has offered more cryptic answers in interviews.
In particular, his conversation with GQ made headlines in January as Salah went on the defence amid reports that he was demanding up to £400,000 per week to sign a fresh contract. "I want to stay, but it's not in my hands. It's in their hands. I'm not asking for crazy stuff," the Egypt captain affirmed, demanding that the Reds pay him what he believes he's worth.
"The thing is, when you ask for something and they show you they can give you something, [they should] because they appreciate what you did for the club. I've been here for my fifth year now. I know the club very well. I love the fans. The fans love me. But with the administration, they have [been] told the situation. It's in their hands."
With the season done and dusted, the saga has come back to the forefront of discussion at Liverpool - not helped by the fact long-time forward partner Sadio Mane suddenly wants out with one year left on his deal, too.
Currently more than 2,000 miles from the negotiating table while on international duty, Salah - who The Athletic report would be open to shockingly transferring to a Premier League rival - has riled the Reds even more with a decision on the pitch. Not by his own admission, the Ballon d'Or contender was revealed to have recently rejected Liverpool's request to have a scan on a groin injury which rendered him a doubt for the Champions League final.
Salah braved the heartbreaking 1-0 defeat in Paris but his employers hoped that he would seek treatment rather than playing 90 minutes against Guinea a week later. Egypt manager Ehab Galal confirmed the scenario, telling KingFut : "Salah was suffering from an injury and played through it. He rejected Liverpool's request for an X-ray before the game and will now undergo it."
So, with the situation only getting messier to the public, you'd expect Klopp to be wound-up when speaking about Salah's future. Contrarily, the German has kept a relaxed demeanour and calmly stated in March: "We cannot do much more, that's how it is. But I don't think it's about that. It's Mo's decision pretty much. The club did what they can do. That's how it is. Nothing bad to say about it.
"It's fine from my point of view. It's exactly like it should be in this moment in time. Everything is set. Nothing happened further, no signing, no rejection or whatever. We just have to wait for that. It's completely fine. No rush in that situation."
All amicable, right? Not exactly. Salah's agent, Ramy Abbas Issa, responded to those claims from Klopp only 80 minutes after the press conference had concluded, tweeting seven laughing emojis.
Join the debate! Will Salah sign a new contract or leave Liverpool? Give us your prediction in the comments section.
While Issa might point to Salah deserving parity with some of the Premier League's highest-paid players - such as Cristiano Ronaldo and Kevin De Bruyne - Liverpool's reluctance to hand out big contracts to even their finest servants aged 30 years or over is well documented.
Club captain Jordan Henderson initially rejected the Reds' offer before agreeing fresh terms last year, while Mane's demands have been part of the reason why it appears he'll be playing for Bayern Munich once the new campaign kicks off. Some would argue that a player of Salah's world-class ilk is worth breaking the bank for, while others are more cautious of what breaching their tightly-controlled wage structure would mean for the club's long-term financial future.
While we may have to wait until this time next year for a resolution, there's a reckoning on the horizon.
