Mohamed Salah was greeted by cheering Trabzonspor fans in Istanbul on Wednesday, arriving on a private jet wearing the club’s blue and burgundy striped shirt as he closed in on a free transfer move to the Turkish club. A signing ceremony is set for Thursday at 7:30 p.m. local time.
Trabzonspor confirmed they had begun transfer negotiations with the Egyptian forward, with the club chairman noting that Salah was expected to complete medical checks before heading to Trabzon to formalise the deal.
Salah ended a nine-year spell at Anfield by mutually agreeing to terminate his Liverpool contract a year early, after a difficult season that saw him dropped and publicly fall out with then head coach Arne Slot. He leaves Liverpool as the club’s third-highest scorer of all time, having netted 257 goals in 442 appearances and lifted seven major trophies during his time at Merseyside.
The move is a surprise to many. Despite his struggles last season, the expectation was that Salah would seek to remain in Europe’s top five leagues, or at the very least join a Champions League club. Instead, he joins Trabzonspor which finished third in the Turkish Super Lig last season and I’ll face a Europa League playoff later this month.
Salah had also been linked with moves to MLS and the Saudi Pro League before Trabzonspor emerged as the frontrunners. He played five games at this summer’s World Cup, helping Egypt reach the Round of 16 before being eliminated by Argentina in one of the tournament’s most dramatic comebacks.
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