Liverpool Transfer News: Is Maghnes Akliouche the Perfect Mohamed Salah Replacement?
Ben McAleer
Liverpool’s quest to sign a new right winger suffered an early blow. When it became clear that Mohamed Salah would be leaving Anfield over the summer, rumours of his replacement started to swirl.
Yan Diomande seemed the logical successor for the Egyptian star on Merseyside. The Ivorian enjoyed a stunning breakout campaign with German giants RB Leipzig. The Bundesliga outfit were prepared to command a significant fee in order to cash in on the teenager.
Right winger Liverpool's next port of call
The Reds would likely have spent big on a player who could, if his World Cup 2026 showings were anything to go by, dominate at the top level for years to come. Liverpool, though, look set to be trumped by French and European champions Paris Saint-Germain for Diomande. Real Madrid are also considering a move for the 19-year-old.
Back to the drawing board for Liverpool, then. They needn’t have looked far, however. PSG have credited with an interest in Maghnes Akliouche. The 24-year-old has also been heavily linked with a Premier League switch over the last 12 months.
Tottenham Hotspur pondered a move for the France international last summer, and again in January. The north London side are unlikely to lure Akliouche to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium now.
PSG remain the frontrunners to sign the Monaco man. Any dawdling, though, and Liverpool may well pounce for the French attacker. It’s a potential move that would make sense for both player and club.
Attacking similarities
Salah’s preference has always been to cut onto his favoured left foot from the right flank. Take his 29-goal season in Liverpool’s 2024/25 title winning campaign. 26 of his 29 goals came with his left foot. The likelihood is that head coach Andoni Iraola will want to adopt a similar approach at Anfield in the coming campaign.
The Spaniard, like predecessor Arne Slot, favours a 4-2-3-1 setup. The players are in place to implement the set up… bar the right winger. Victor Munoz provides cover and competition for Cody Gakpo on the opposite flank. The former Osasuna man and the Dutch forward both prefer to cut onto their respective right from the left side.
Iraola will want a right winger who does similar. Akliouche is one who prefers this approach. He has scored 18 league goals in his last three Ligue 1 seasons. Of those 18, 13 have come with his left foot.
However, Salah and Akliouche are two different attacking players entirely. Whereas the former looks to maximise his explosiveness in the final third, the latter is more of a creator than an out-and-out winger. Indeed, of Akliouche’s 31 league appearances last season, 14 were in the number 10 role.
The Egypt international attempted 3.1 take ons per 90 in the Premier League last season. By comparison, Akliouche attempted 2.2. Salah, meanwhile, averaged 33.2 passes per 90. The Monaco man bettered the former Liverpool star, having managed 41.2 passes per 90.
Akliouche is one who favours to retain possession and bring teammates into play rather than look to beat a marker and go for goal himself. The French attacker just isn’t that sort of attacking player.
Defensive work key for Iraola
Conversely, Iraola also demands that his attacking players work hard off the ball. Iraola’s Bournemouth side ranked top for ball recoveries (1967) in the Premier League last season. The Cherries finished the campaign having won possession in the attacking third the fourth most times (174) in England’s top tier. This is where Akliouche is arguably a superior player to Salah.
The 34-year-old former Liverpool man won possession in the attacking third 21 times in the 2025/26 Premier League campaign, the 12th most. By comparison, Akliouche did so 28 times in Ligue 1 last season, the third most. The Monaco star averaged 1.5 tackles per 90 in France’s top tier, over double that of Salah (0.7).
Akliouche’s commendable work rate would be a desirable trait for Iraola. As Salah became more Lionel Messi-like in the final knockings of his Liverpool career, it felt as though the Reds were playing with 10 men given the Egyptian’s lack of defensive input. With Akliouche in the side, Liverpool would be able press high and effectively, increasing the likelihood of capitalising on defensive mishaps in their pursuit of goal.
It’s clear, then, that Akliouche isn’t a direct like-for-like replacement for Salah should Liverpool firm up their interest and beat PSG to the Frenchman. Few, though, are. Replacing Salah is an impossible task.
The addition of Akliouche would allow Liverpool to hunt down possession as an effective unit, harking back to the peak days under Jurgen Klopp. On paper, it may not seem like the perfect move. However, there is logic behind the Reds’ reported interest in Akliouche. As a Salah successor, he could be an ideal fit, especially as one who’d suit the manager’s approach.
