LIVERPOOL, April 26, 2018 - Liverpool will "robustly turn away" any approach from Real Madrid for Mohamed Salah this summer, and they are ready to offer the Egyptian improved terms on his current contract to ward off interest. Salah has been in sensational form, scoring twice in Liverpool's 5-2 victory over AS Roma in the Champions League semi-final first leg to take his tally to 43 goals for the season. He is reportedly now valued at close to £200 million, but even an offer of this size would not convince the Merseyside club to part with their star forward. Back in March, Chris Bascombe for the Telegraph reported that Liverpool expected an approach from Real but would hold firm to deny them, while one of the earliest stories linking the two came from GianlucaDiMarzio.com back in January. Real plan to make changes to their squad when the season ends, and Salah, on £90,000 per week at Liverpool, is unsurprisingly someone who interests them. But the Egyptian does not have a buyout clause in his contract, and it will be difficult to break up a team Jurgen Klopp is likely to take to the Champions League final this season. Salah's debut season at Anfield has been extraordinary. He won the PFA Player of the Year award on April 23 in recognition of his performances and goal tally, which stands at 31 in the Premier League—just one shy of a new record. His goals have also helped bring the best out of Roberto Firmino, another player whom Liverpool reportedly hope to tie down to a new and improved contract. The Brazilian has scored 15 goals in the league this season and 10 in the Champions League, including two against Roma on Tuesday night. Zinedine Zidane's Real have long been interested in Neymar, and pursuing Salah would reportedly "complicate" an approach for the Paris Saint-German star. Neymar has already met with his agent about a potential move and would like it to happen before the World Cup, per Sport (h/t MailOnline's Daniel Matthews). It seems unlikely that Real Madrid can afford to bring both Neymar and Salah to the Bernabeu at the same time, and since Liverpool intend to hold firm over Salah so soon after Philippe Coutinho left for Barcelona, fans on Merseyside can rest easy for now.
