Glen Johnson feels Liverpool boss Arne Slot must keep hold of Mohamed Salah and Luis Diaz amid interest
Former England defender Glen Johnson believes new Liverpool boss Arne Slot should keep hold of Mohamed Salah and Luis Diaz to enjoy a successful debut campaign in England, as quoted from an interview with Betfred.
Arne Slot, who has replaced Jurgen Klopp at the helm of Liverpool, is yet to see his new squad as international competitions such as European Championships and Copa America continue dominating the football world. It looks like no major decisions will be made on the current squad until at least the start of the pre-season, which starts in the last week of July.
However, that hasn’t stopped some of the Reds’ stars from being linked with a move away from Anfield. Mohamed Salah was the subject of a mammoth bid from Saudi Arabia last summer which Liverpool rejected. Almost a year later, Saudi Arabian clubs are once again showing concrete interest in the Egyptian star.
Also, Luis Diaz is on the radar of Barcelona. The La Liga giants are hoping Saudi club Al-Hilal will make a sizeable bid for winger Raphinha, which would give them funds to pursue a deal for Diaz, who is currently competing with the Colombia squad at the Copa America.
Asked if it is very important for Arne Slot to retain key players such as Salah and Diaz if he’s to enjoy a fruitful maiden season at Anfield, Glen Johnson told Betfred: “He definitely shouldn’t want a big change, but swapping out two or three players would of course be no problem because that’s the norm. As long as he doesn’t get rid of any of the core players in the team, then he’s giving himself a better chance of success. The same goes for the staff at the club as well.”
“Put it this way, everyone already at Liverpool knows more about the club than he does, so as long as he makes his changes gradually, unlike Chelsea who went on a mass firing spree and got rid of several members of staff overnight, he will be fine. You need those people around you who know the club and if he’s intelligent, which I have no doubt that he is, he will know that you need those people to learn from regarding how the club functions, the culture, and so on. You need to know all this before you start making big changes.”
The ex-Liverpool full-back believes the Dutch tactician should look to swap a couple of players here and there, try maintaining the core of the squad and make changes gradually if he is to become successful at the club.
“I think he needs to keep all his key players, with the exception of swapping out a couple for the players he already has his eye on, and make changes gradually, then I think he can be successful,” he added.
Salah proved last season again why he is so crucial to our club. He bagged 18 goals and 10 assists in 32 Premier League appearances, as the Reds finished third in the table. However, he turned 32 earlier this month and has just one year left on his contract, so his future remains rife. While the Egyptian international has been among the best players in the Premier League and delivered the goods consistently since his arrival from AS Roma in 2017, we must cash in Salah and re-invest in a younger talent with high potential.
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As far as Diaz is concerned, he may get criticised for his lack of final product but the winger is a constant pest for defenders and works extremely hard off the ball. At 27, the Colombian is at the peak of his powers and we must look to hold onto him at any cost amid interest from Barcelona.
