Previous Salah contract was 'a hard piece of work'
Liverpool's former director of research Ian Graham says he was "surprised" at what he discovered when Mohamed Salah last negotiated a new deal at Anfield.Graham helped work on the three-year contract in 2022 that saw then 30-year-old Salah extend his stay with the club until this summer.The 32-year-old is now in the final months of that contract with a new deal as yet unsigned, having scored 25 goals and provided 16 assists in a remarkable 27 Premier League games so far this season."At that time, I thought I would not recommend for players of his age to sign a contract," Graham told a Financial Times Business of Football summit. "But, this was the strength of the data that forces you to take an objective viewpoint. It surprises you."I was surprised at looking at his calibre of player and how they could go into their 30s [still] performing at the same level. When those players drop off, it tends to be a drop in minutes rather than in quality."We decided to give him a contract in the summer of 2022 and that was a hard piece of work."I am delighted I am not responsible for that piece of work today!"
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Scottish Sun
30 minutes ago
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The Sun
30 minutes ago
- The Sun
Michael Owen reveals he didn't know what Ballon d'Or was when he won it and had to ask manager about it
MICHAEL OWEN has admitted he had no idea what the Ballon d'Or was - even after winning it. The former Liverpool striker won the prestigious gong in 2001, beating Real Madrid icon Raul into second place. 2 2 Owen played 297 times for the Reds over an eight-year stint, scoring 158 goals. He later moved to Real Madrid and Manchester United, as well as earning 89 caps for England. The 45-year-old's electric pace and lethal finishing made him one of the world's most feared strikers. Owen bagged 24 goals in 46 Premier League games in 2001, catching the eye of the Ballon d'Or panel. The award is handed out annually to Europe's best player. But after beating greats including David Beckham, Luis Figo and Thierry Henry to the award, Owen had absolutely no clue what it was. Owen told talkSPORT: "When Gerard Houllier phoned me and said 'You've won the Ballon d'Or', I'm like 'What's that gaffer'? "I didn't know what the award was. I never did because I never even knew what it was. "Back in those days it was never in our press." Owen was just the fourth English player to win the Ballon d'Or, following Stanley Matthews, Bobby Charlton and Kevin Keegan. But it wasn't until he became a Galactico with Madrid in 2004 that he truly understood its significance. Owen continued: "When I played for Real Madrid, it's like an MBE, it follows you. "Whenever they mention your name it's Ballon d'Or winner. "Abroad it is so big and it's only just cottoned on here for the last five or ten years. "It's so much bigger in other countries, in foreign countries. "It quickly sunk in how big it was."
