Al Ittihad eye Premier League defender and Liverpool's Mohamed Salah before transfer window closes on Thursday - Reports
Saudi Arabian club Al-Ittihad are reportedly looking to sign Liverpool superstar Mohamed Salah and West Ham United defender Nayef Aguerd.
While the summer transfer window has already reached its conclusion in England, it is open until Thursday, September 7, in Saudi Arabia. As a result, Al-Ittihad are still looking to add to their squad and the aforementioned duo are their primary targets, according to Football Insider.
The Saudi Pro League giants have already seen a £150 million bid for Salah rejected by Liverpool, who may not be able to sign an adequate replacement. However, iSport reported on Tuesday, September 5, that they are set to table a bid worth £215 million to test the Reds' resolve once again.
Al-Ittihad have notably signed Fabinho from Liverpool, N'Golo Kante, Karim Benzema (both free transfers) and Jota from Celtic this summer. They are currently third in the Saudi Pro League with four wins and a defeat from their first five matches.
Salah arrived at Anfield back in 2016 and has been pivotal to Jurgen Klopp's side. The Egyptian, 31, has recorded 188 goals and 81 assists in 309 matches for his current club. He has won the Premier League, UEFA Champions League, UEFA Super Cup, FIFA Club World Cup, FA Cup and Carabao Cup with them.
It's worth noting, however, that Salah will only have a year left on his current contract next summer.
Meanwhile, Aguerd joined West Ham only last summer on a £30 million deal from Stade Rennes. The centre-back, 27, played only 30 times last season due to an ankle injury that ruled him out for a few months at the start of the season.
However, he made an impact defensively, starting seven of their eight UEFA Europa Conference League knockout games, including the final. Aguerd also scored twice in 18 Premier League matches. Additionally, he started four times during Morocco's fairytale run to the 2022 FIFA World Cup semifinals.
Looking at how Liverpool's Mohamed Salah and West Ham's Nayef Aguerd have fared so far this season
Mohamed Salah has endured a decent start to the 2023-24 campaign. He has scored twice and assisted twice in four Premier League matches to guide Liverpool to three wins and a draw. Salah has averaged 2.0 key passes, 1.8 successful dribbles and 1.0 shots on target per game.
Nayef Aguerd, meanwhile, has played in three of West Ham United's four league games this term. He scored in their second match, a 3-1 win over Chelsea, but was also sent off in the same contest, which forced him to miss their 3-1 victory against Brighton & Hove Albion.
The Moroccan returned for the Hammers' 2-1 win over Luton Town prior to the ongoing international break. He has recorded a passing accuracy of 82%, while averaging 5.0 balls recovered, 4.3 clearances, 4.3 duels won, 1.7 interceptions and 1.7 tackles per game so far this season.
Salah's Liverpool are currently third in the Premier League standings, while Aguerd's West Ham, who also have three wins and a draw so far, are fourth.