Arne Slot urges Mohamed Salah to stay at Liverpool and finally win Ballon d’Or

The Egyptian has produced a superlative season to power Liverpool towards Premier League and Champions League triumph

Mohamed Salah has scored 25 Premier League goals this season and 30 in all competitions (PA Wire)

Arne Slot has said he hopes Mohamed Salah extends his contract at Anfield as he urged the forward to stay and have more outstanding seasons and insisted that the Egyptian’s chances of winning the Ballon d’Or will improve if Liverpool secure trophies.

The Liverpool head coach admitted that, with every goal Salah scores, his contract demands could become bigger but feels that is someone else is problem.

Salah’s current deal expires in the summer and Liverpool have been in talks with the Egyptian, but risk losing him on a free transfer.

Salah scored his 30th goal of the season in Sunday’s 2-0 victory at Manchester City to draw level with Gordon Hodgson as the club’s third highest scorer ever with 241, and has been directly involved in 51 goals this season, assisting 21.

And Slot said: “Mo has had some outstanding seasons at Liverpool and we hope he can continue that for some period of time but to do that he has to extend his contract, of course.”

Salah is already Liverpool’s best-paid player and, as he excels, might ask for more money in a new deal.

“You can look at it in both ways,” Slot said. “You can say the better he does, the more expensive he might become and if he did really worse we would have second thoughts to extend his contract. For everyone it is the best that he brings in the performances he does now, maybe only for the one who has to pay him it is not the best.

“For everyone else it is the best because if you want to play at this club you need to be at his level otherwise you are almost useless to play at this club because we only need players that are at the top of their game. Because this is one of the best, or the best, club in the world to play for. He needs to have these performances for him to play here and hopefully to extend here.”

Arne Slot has described Mohamed Salah as a ‘top professional’ (PA Wire)

Salah turns 33 in the summer but Slot feels he works hard to remain in the best possible condition.

“What I see is a top professional, not only what you see on the pitch but he comes in early, works so hard on his body and sometimes I get to see a few Instagrams and I think he works even at home as well,” he added. “I think he has found the balance to get the best out of himself, that is what comes with experience and playing games at the highest level. He knows what to do to treat his body in the best possible way for him to get the performances in that he does.”

Salah has won the African Footballer of the Year, PFA Player of the Year and FWA Footballer of the Year awards twice each, but never the Ballon d’Or.

“It is a good thing Mo is in the discussion because it means he is doing well and we are doing well but to stay in the discussion he should carry on the performances he has been doing for seven or eight months,” said Slot.

Liverpool, who host Newcastle on Wednesday, have an 11-point lead in the Premier League and Slot added: Liverpool, who host Newcastle on Wednesday, have an 11-point lead in the Premier League and Slot added: “In general for someone to win the Ballon d’Or he has to win something.

“If we as a team can win something he will have a far better chance to win an individual prize like the Ballon d’Or.

“All the ones who won it in the past probably won either the league or the Champions League. But in football it is always like this, you need the team to win an individual prize and that is what Mo understands really well because his work-rate almost during the whole game was very good and very helpful to us for having the chance to win against City.”