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Report: Liverpool to resist bids for Salah as Barcelona, Real Madrid pursue

Clive Brunskill / Getty Images Sport / Getty

Liverpool is determined to avoid yet another transfer saga linking its best player with a move away from Anfield, reportedly refusing to consider offers for the Premier League's top scorer, Mohamed Salah.

Since joining Liverpool from Roma last summer, Salah has emerged as the leading candidate to win the PFA Player of the Year award during his second spell in the Premier League after scoring 28 goals in 30 appearances.

Inevitably, there's been plenty of talk linking the Egyptian international with a lucrative transfer away, with several outlets suggesting that La Liga's Barcelona and Real Madrid will pursue Salah - who had a disappointing, yet brief, spell with Chelsea - this summer.

Liverpool, however, is believed to be resolute in its effort to retain Salah and will not sell the 25-year-old under any circumstances, according to Chris Bascombe of The Telegraph

It's hardly a surprise that Liverpool is eager to hold on to Salah given that the Reds lost their fight to keep Philippe Coutinho despite resisting offers from Barcelona for six months, selling the Brazilian to the Catalan side for a club-record £142-million fee in January.

Liverpool's position this time around is strengthened, according to Bascombe, by the fact the fee for Coutinho has yet to be touched, and the club has also received another £50 million for progressing to the quarter-final stage of the Champions League.

As hard as it may seem, there's a chance that Salah's stock could rise even further this season, depending on whether he can edge Manchester City midfielder Kevin De Bruyne for the PFA Player of the Year honour, becoming the first Liverpool player since Ian Rush to score 40 goals in a season in all competitions, and if he can lead Egypt to a successful run during the World Cup in Russia this summer.

Aside from Coutinho, Liverpool has lost some of its biggest stars to the Spanish giants over the years, with Xabi Alonso, Javier Mascherano, and Luis Suarez swapping the Premier League for La Liga.

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