AS Roma winger Mohamed Salah completed his move to Liverpool on Thursday.
The Premier League outfit have long sought the Egyptian’s signature.
Here are five things you may not have known about the 25-year-old.
SALAH NEARLY JOINED LIVERPOOL IN 2014
Liverpool and Basel were in negotiations over Salah’s transfer in 2014, only for Chelsea to swoop in with a better offer.
Jose Mourinho, Chelsea manager at the time, was instrumental in convincing Salah to pick Chelsea over Liverpool, although the Egyptian says he’s always been fond of the Reds.
ITALIAN MEDIA CALLED HIM THE “EGYPTIAN MESSI”
It’s become common in football to compare everyone to either Messi or Ronaldo, and Salah was no exception. The Italian media dubbed him the Egyptian Messi when he was at Fiorentina.
Even before that, Mourinho had made lofty comparisons, saying Salah reminded him of Gareth Bale and Arjen Robben.
SETS LIVERPOOL TRANSFER MILESTONE
The transfer has set a milestone for Liverpool.
A reported fee in the region of £35-40 million, Salah takes Liverpool past the £1 billion mark for the amount they’ve spent on transfers in the Premier League era.
STOLE THE SHOW AT BASEL
Salah first burst onto the scene at Egyptian side El Mowkaloon, before catching the eye of big clubs in Europe at Basel.
At both stops, Salah’s performances were duly acknowledged, as he was named the CAF Most Promising African Talent of the Year in 2012, and the Swiss Super League’s Golden Player award in 2013, his first season with Basel.
HAS BEEN WAITING FOR LIVERPOOL MOVE
Although he was swayed by Mourinho in 2014, Salah says he’s been waiting for the chance to don the famous red shirt of Liverpool.
He said then that he was waiting for Liverpool to complete the transfer before he got the call from Mourinho. Three years later, he’s finally getting his wish.