‘I don’t feel’ – John Barnes points out Liverpool ‘problem’ following Mo Salah exit announcement

John Barnes doesn’t think Liverpool actually need to replace Mo Salah in the summer and instead believes the Reds’ problems lie in midfield and defence.

Arne Slot’s side have struggled in their attempt of defending the Premier League title this term – currently sat fifth in the table and a whopping 21 points behind league leaders Arsenal.

The Anfield-based outfit’s main priority this term is to secure a top four finish while still being in contention for FA Cup and Champions League success.

Salah announced last week that the current campaign will be his final one on Merseyside and Liverpool legend Barnes has discussed what the club’s plans should be for after the Egyptian leaves.

“In terms of replacements, if you look at what we have, our problem is going forward and scoring goals. I mean if we look at Wirtz, Ekitike and Isak, we’ve got Ngumoha, we’ve still got Gakpo,” he told talkSPORT (Via Rousing The Kop).

“I don’t feel that we necessarily have to replace him, because I don’t think that the solution is to go and get another player and give him £400,000 a week to replace Mo Salah. We have enough strikers, we have enough attackers. Our problem is in midfield and defence, that’s really what we have to do. So I don’t think we have to go and replace him necessarily.”

Liverpool splashed just shy of £300m last summer on the signings of Alexander Isak, Florian Wirtz and Hugo Ekitike.

Despite the bolstering of their attacking ranks, Slot’s side have looked extremely lacklustre going forward at times this term and although Salah hasn’t been at his best – he’s going to be a major miss.

There’s confidence that last year’s signings will all come good however, and instead the lack of creativity from midfield – coupled with a leaky defence – is more the reason behind Liverpool’s poor campaign.

The future is bright for Rio Ngumoha

Barnes is right to mention young Rio Ngumoha who has been a breath of fresh air for the Reds this term with the teenage sensation excelling when given a chance by our Dutch head coach.

He deserves more of a chance from the start before the end of the current campaign with him often doing more in a short period off the bench than Cody Gakpo has done from the start.

The 17-year-old has made 21 appearances for the Reds (across all competitions) and scored that memorable last minute winner at St. James’ Park earlier int he campaign.

Salah will be eager to mentor the youngster further during his finals months at the club while also focusing on further adding to his own impressive figures before calling it a day at Anfield.

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