Azman Manap is delighted Liverpool rejected Al Ittihad’s £150 million offer to buy Mohamed Salah, as he believes the Egyptian will help the club return to Champions League football next year.
Liverpool only finished fifth last season, its lowest since 2016, and will play in the Europa League.
But in Salah, it can count on a player to guide them back to the top of the table. The stats back him up. Since joining Liverpool in 2017, the Egyptian has scored 188 times in 309 matches, and has 76 assists.
After four games this season, Salah has already scored twice, and has as many assists. Going back to last season, Salah has scored, or had an assist in 10 consecutive matches.
“Salah is good at scoring, but do not forget, he is great at creating goals, too,” said Azman, who hails from Ampang, Selangor.
“With (Luis) Diaz, (Cody) Gakpo, (Darwin) Nunez and (Diogo) Jota lurking around the penalty box, no one is better at finding them with pinpoint accuracy.
“I hope Al Ittihad does not come back with a mega offer in January, as we need Salah to help guide the team back to the Champions League.”
Azman, who has supported Liverpool since the 1980s, said he fell in love with the Reds because of players like Alan Hansen, Bruce Grobbelaar, Graeme Souness, Craig Johnson, Ian Rush, and ‘King’ Sir Kenny Dalglish.
“It was not love at first sight, to be honest. The two teams I liked watching back then were Liverpool and Tottenham,” said the businessman.
“Spurs had (Steve) Archibald, (Garth) Crooks, (Glenn) Hoddle, (Ossie) Ardiles and (Ray) Clemence. All fantastic players, but the legacy of Liverpool football club won me over.”
Looking forward to the season, Azman said he was being realistic and believes Liverpool will finish in the top four – but not in the top spot.
He said reigning champions Manchester City would likely retain the title, as it is too consistent, its striker Erling Haaland, a goal machine, and manager Pep Guardiola, a tactical genius.
“Liverpool will finish in the top four. Maybe second, behind City. The other teams in the Champions League spots are likely to be Tottenham and Arsenal,” said the father of two teenage girls.
“Liverpool’s best bet for silverware is in the Europa League. I am confident of that.
“We could also probably win the FA Cup, too. We have many young players who can go far. The key will be how quickly they can connect.”
Azman said he is delighted with the Reds’ summer business, as the club brought in four new midfielders – Alexis Mac Allister, Dominik Szoboszlai, Wataru Endo, and Ryan Gravenberch – to replace Fabinho, Jordan Henderson, James Milner, Naby Keita, and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain.
Allister and Szoboszlai have been a revelation. Interestingly, they have more minutes on the pitch (672 minutes) in four games than Keita and Oxlade-Chamberlain did in the entirety of last season (627 minutes).
“I am happy with the transfer business, as we strengthened the midfield position. It was something we should have done last season,” said Azman.
“We all saw how bad we were in midfield last year. In Mac Allister, Szoboszlai, and Endo, we have a solid wall with a good eye for passes.
“I cannot wait to see Gravenberch play. He came in on the last day of the transfer window. He is young, athletic, and a good addition to the team.”
Azman, however, hopes the club will start rebuilding the defence in the January transfer window by signing a leftback and rightback.
After last week’s international break, the EPL resumes tomorrow evening with Liverpool travelling to Wolves for the early kickoff (7.30pm).
FIXTURES (Malaysian time)
SATURDAY
Wolves vs Liverpool (7.30pm)
Fulham vs Luton (10pm)
Tottenham vs Sheffield United (10pm)
West Ham vs Manchester City (10pm)
Manchester United vs Brighton (10pm)
Aston Villa vs Crystal Palace (10pm)
SUNDAY
Newcastle vs Brentford (12.30am)
Bournemouth vs Chelsea (9pm)
Everton vs Arsenal (11.30pm)
TUESDAY
Nottingham Forest vs Burnley (2.45am)
