Micah Richards has shared that Mo Salah had been interested in playing for Liverpool as far back as his time on loan with Fiorentina in 2015.
The then Chelsea star had struggled to find his place in Jose Mourinho’s squad, with the likes of Andre Schurrle then favoured over the Egyptian international.
“I had the pleasure of playing with Mo for six months in Florence in 2015 and he used to tell me on the afternoons we would go out for coffee of his ambition to be a star for Liverpool. They were the team he always watched,” the former Manchester City star wrote in his column for the Daily Mail.
“When he joined Fiorentina on loan from Chelsea, he was frustrated with himself.
“Things hadn’t worked out at Stamford Bridge but it was always in his mind that he would go back to England to show everyone what he could do.”
A return to the Premier League was scoffed at by neutrals, with many football fans clearly not expecting the kind of remarkable homecoming season the No.11 delivered under Jurgen Klopp.
It’s extremely flattering to hear that Liverpool was in the 29-year-old’s mind as far back as his time in Italy.
Having signed for what is undoubtedly now perceived as a bargain fee for the kind of player we received, Salah has come on leaps and bounds from his Chelsea days.
The former Roma man has been an invaluable presence in the squad, near-singlehandedly keeping us in contention for a top four spot last term with his vital, 17-point-winning goals.
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