Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp admits being put under pressure to sign Mohamed Salah after fearing that the forward might be too skinny to survive and succeed in the Premier League

  • Liverpool signed pacey forward Mohamed Salah from Roma in the summer 
  • But Jurgen Klopp has revealed the transfer came close to not happening at all 
  • Klopp admits that he first thought Salah was too skinny to succeed at Anfield 

Jurgen Klopp has admitted being put under pressure to sign Mo Salah by his scouting department after he initially feared the Egyptian winger might be too skinny to succeed in the Premier League.

It's advice the Liverpool manager is delighted to have listened to with Salah having already scored 19 goals this season and the member of Klopp's Fab Four - along with Philippe Coutinho, Sadio Mane and Roberto Firmino - he is most reluctant to rotate.

Eyebrows were raised when Liverpool paid Roma £34million for Salah in the summer because he'd scored only twice in 19 games in a previous spell in England at Chelsea.

Mohamed Salah has been in fantastic form for Liverpool since the start of the season

Mohamed Salah has been in fantastic form for Liverpool since the start of the season

But the 25-year-old has proved the bargain of the season and the current Premier League player of the month after scoring seven times in four games in November.


Certainly, Bournemouth manager Eddie Howe will be making special plans for Salah on Sunday with the Liverpool star competing with two-time winner Harry Kane for the league's Golden Boot.

'It's true he starts often because he is in a very good moment and it is difficult to think about leaving him out,' said Klopp, who was criticised for making changes after the 7-0 Champions League win against Spartak Moscow and saw his side subsequently held to draws at Anfield by Everton and West Brom.

Salah has become a popular figure at Liverpool since arriving from Roma in the summer

Salah has become a popular figure at Liverpool since arriving from Roma in the summer

'He is always a naturally fit player. We talk a lot to the medical department and it is really rare that any issues with him. You don’t hear that’s he had a problem here or a problem there, that’s a big thing.

'When you hear the name of a player twice from the medical department it is pretty clear he is not in the squad or on the bench. That’s how it works these times. We and he have been lucky so far that there is nothing around him.

'I didn’t make a number (goals target) for him before when we signed him. We knew we would get a very offensive-minded midfielder who is a lot of games a striker but also has the ability to make goals, to setup goals. So that what was the package we wanted, and that’s cool.'

Team-mates are in awe of his sheer pace, with Coutinho judging him the quickest player at the club, among a few flyers. 'He is so fast, you can see on the pitch. It's crazy,' said the Brazilian.

Jurgen Klopp admits he initially thought Salah would be too skinny for the Premier League

Jurgen Klopp admits he initially thought Salah would be too skinny for the Premier League

Salah never settled under Jose Mourinho at Chelsea having made the big leap to Stamford Bridge from Basel. But he rediscovered his mojo in Italy with Fiorentina and Roma and Klopp finally decided he was strong enough physically and mentally to have another crack at the Premier League.

'His speed is his speed, it doesn't depend on which league he's in. That is clear,' said Klopp. 'Of course we had to look at a lot of his games to see about other parts, physicality, being strong enough for challenges.

'But you see now, he is. I met him of course at one point and he looked ready. If you watch him only on television he looks quite skinny, I said before the scouting department did a fantastic job around him. They didn't get out of our ears. It was 100 per cent, he is ready, he is ready.

'At one point, we were all sure he was ready. And that's how it looks now.'

Salah has already equalled his best goal tally in a single season and is Liverpool's highest scorer since Luis Suarez. Besides his 19 for Liverpool, he also netted for Egypt against Uganda to help take his country to next summer's World Cup.

Klopp says there are reasons he's a different proposition to the 21-year-old who arrived at Chelsea in 2014.

'He was a kid. We all need confidence. We all need help from outside, especially as a young player in a foreign, very strong, very demanding league,' he said.

The Liverpool manager says 'if you watch him only on television he looks quite skinny'

The Liverpool manager says 'if you watch him only on television he looks quite skinny'

'There is nobody to blame at Chelsea, they had a fantastic team. But if we'd played him only five times this season and said: “Okay, you need to improve you are not used to our system”, then he could not perform like this.

'Sometimes it takes a little bit of time for a player to have a situation where everybody is helping him, and leave you on the pitch even if you are not performing at your best, because you think he will maybe score one more. He has this time.

'He has also made brave decisions. Going from Basel to Chelsea is a brave decision, of course for a player from Egypt playing in Switzerland it is kind of a dream going to a really big club in England.

'Then you realise “OK, it has not been that dream” but that didn't make him think he wasn't good enough. He wanted to prove it.

'And so he went to Italy, Firenze, Roma, and he proved everything. And that is another difficult league for a striker. They play different football but it is difficult for a striker especially, and he did well. And so we are really happy we could convince him to come here.'

Liverpool lost a 4-3 thriller in last season's corresponding fixture at Bournemouth but despite regular scrutiny over their defence, Klopp's men have lost only two league games this season – a record bettered only by Manchester City.

Simon Mignolet is available to return in goal while Emre Can, who appears is running down the clock on his contract at Anfield, may find his position under threat if Klopp decides to play Jordan Henderson and Gini Wijnaldum.

Klopp is under pressure after two home draws but has cleverly tried to turn the tables onto Howe's team who are near the relegation zone after losing 1-0 at Manchester United on Wednesday.

'Now Bournemouth are under pressure, of course,' he said. 'A home game, but another tough game after playing Manchester United.'

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