Football pundit, Jordan Jarrett-Bryan, has told Liverpool not to waste their time and resources trying to convince Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane to remain at Anfield for next season.
According to the talkSPORT’s host, there would be ‘dangerous’ consequences in trying to keep the duo at the club.
The deals of both players end in 12 months with Mane linked with a move to Bayern Munich, while Salah has insisted he will stay, there are big questions over his long-term future.
However, the Egyptian is yet to agree a new deal at Anfield and reports surfaced this week that he would consider joining a Premier League rival.
There have also been calls for the club to give the two African stars ‘whatever they want’ to tie them down.
Bryan believes Liverpool should hold firm on their stance and not tinker with the club’s wage structure.
“I think the precedent it might set is dangerous,” he said.
“I don’t personally think that Sadio Mane and Mohamed Salah are even the two most important players at Liverpool. I think Virgil van Dijk is a more important player than both of those two.
“If I’m him [Van Dijk], I’m saying: ‘Alright boss, if they’re on £300,000/350,000-a-week, I want £350,000/400,000.”
Neither Salah or Mane were household names in world football before arriving at Liverpool and Jarrett-Bryan paid tribute to Jurgen Klopp’s development of the pair and the club’s recruitment policy – something that needs to be preserved above all else.
“Liverpool have proven that their recruitment over the last five, six, seven years has been brilliant,” he said. “I would back my recruitment team – if one of them was to go – to go out and find the next one.
“Now, the short term hit might be costly, but I just feel like the real gem at that club is Jurgen Klopp and I would back Klopp to make Luis Diaz the next Mane, and I would back him to make Fabio Carvalho the next Salah.
“It may be extreme but I’d back him to go again and really improve those players.
“I wouldn’t allow those players to hold me ransom. I would make them an offer that I think is reasonable, somewhere level in the market.”