Trabzonspor Confirm Talks to Sign Mohamed Salah After Liverpool Exit

Trabzonspor have confirmed they are in negotiations to sign Mohamed Salah. The Turkish club say the 34-year-old Egypt forward, a free agent since leaving Liverpool at the end of last season, is due to arrive in Istanbul on Wednesday. That is talks, not a transfer: no signing has been announced.

What Trabzonspor Have Confirmed

In a statement, Trabzonspor said negotiations with Salah had begun and that the player would land in Istanbul on Wednesday. “The player is planned to reach Trabzon in the evening of the same day,” the club said, adding that “the time and other details regarding the welcome program in Trabzon will be shared with the public through our club’s official communication channels during the day.”

Announcing talks and planning a welcome reception is not the same as announcing a deal. Until Trabzonspor publish a signing statement and the contract is registered with the Turkish federation, this remains an advanced negotiation rather than a completed transfer.

Nicknamed the Black Sea Storm, Trabzonspor are one of the few Turkish clubs from outside Istanbul to have won the domestic title — which is why a move of this size would land as a statement against the capital’s big three.

Why Salah Is Available on a Free

Salah left Liverpool at the end of last season and is out of contract, meaning no fee is payable. Wages and bonuses are the only barrier, which is exactly why a Süper Lig club can realistically enter a conversation that a transfer fee would have priced them out of.

He joined Liverpool from Roma in 2017 and went past 200 goals for the club in all competitions, winning the Premier League Golden Boot four times — a haul matched by very few players in the competition’s history.

At 34, the calculation shifts from ceiling to certainty: guaranteed minutes, senior status in the dressing room and a shorter contract tend to outweigh the badge on the shirt.

What It Would Mean for the Premier League

Salah’s departure already left Liverpool without the most reliable goal source of their modern era, and the Premier League without one of its three or four most marketable players. A move to Turkey would close that chapter rather than reopen it, ending speculation about a late return to England on a free.

It also underlines a pattern the league has grown used to. Elite Premier League forwards in their thirties increasingly leave for markets that pay on wages alone — Saudi Arabia, MLS and now Turkey — rather than dropping down within English football, where profitability and sustainability rules make big salaries for veterans hard to justify.

For Liverpool, the practical consequence is squad planning: replacing a player who delivered double figures in goals season after season is a multi-window job, not a single signing.

The Hurdles That Could Still Stop It

Wages come first. Salah was among the Premier League’s highest earners and any Turkish offer requires either a significant cut or a bonus and image-rights structure that bridges the gap.

Egypt’s schedule matters too. Salah is his country’s captain and focal point, with a demanding international calendar ahead including preparation for the 2026 World Cup — a factor that shapes where a player of his age chooses to base himself.

And free agents rarely negotiate with one club. Going public about talks is often a way of forcing a timeline, which means the outcome may be decided faster than the statement itself suggests.

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