The Saudi Pro League will renew its efforts to attract Liverpool's Mohamed Salah to the Middle East in summer.
The Reds midfielder was the subject of a £200m bid from Al-Ittihad late in the window which Liverpool rejected. Next year, however, the Egyptian midfielder will have just 12 months left on his contract, and pressure will increase in the hunt for his signature.
The Daily Mail reported earlier in the week that the Pro League would make no fresh offers for Salah in January, but will instead mount their efforts in summer.
It follows the SPL’s £750m spree on players like Cristiano Ronaldo, Neymar and Karim Benzema, as well as Salah's former teammates Sadio Mané, Fabinho, Roberto Firmino and Jordan Henderson.
The league is expected to reduce spending in the coming year as its commercial and broadcast contracts remain fixed for the next 18 months. Salah, however, remains their most important target and is considered worth the investment.
Known as 'The Pride of the Arabs', the forward is hugely popular in Arab countries and would be almost certainly the most high-profile player to a Middle Eastern market.
He has scored 14 goals from 22 appearances in all competitions this season, helping Liverpool sit at the top of the Premier League. He earns a reported £300,000-a-week on Merseyside, leaving the club with a chance to both cash-in and free up their wage bill when the SPL comes knocking.
He was offered an eye-watering £1.25m-a-week tax free wage by Al-Ittihad last summer.
While Salah didn’t push for a move then, the temptation of similar money in the twilight years of the 31-year-old’s career may prove too much this time.
The SPL are also reportedly targeting Kylian Mbappé as another marquee arrival before cooling their fervent spending.
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