Liverpool vice-captain James Milner has welcomed the £36.9 million signing of Mohamed Salah, highlighting the winger’s work rate as crucial.
Salah joined the club from AS Roma on Thursday night, signing a five-year deal believed to worth around £90,000 a week.
Taking the No. 11 shirt previously worn by Roberto Firmino, with the Brazilian moving to No. 9, Salah is set to be one of the marquee signings of the summer for Jurgen Klopp.
After scoring 15 goals and supplying 13 assists in just 31 games in Serie A last season, the Egyptian certainly has the credentials to slot in alongside Firmino, Philippe Coutinho and Sadio Mane.
But equally as important for Milner, lauding the arrival of Salah, is the 25-year-old’s application off the ball.
“That’s what you need in our team. The way we play, you can’t have any passengers,” he told LiverpoolFC.com.
“Everyone mucks in and we’ve got great team spirit. Everyone gets on the front foot and gets the press; it only takes one person not to do it for it to break down.
“He’ll fit into that really well, with and without the ball. He’s very dangerous with it and causes a lot of problems. And without it, that’s so important the way we play.
“Looking at his stats and things like that, he has had a good season.
“He is a dangerous player and someone who is going to do really well for us, I’m sure.”
Salah is the Reds’ most high-profile signing of the summer so far, with Dominic Solanke also set to join on a free transfer at the beginning of July.
Klopp is targeting further reinforcements ahead of a 2017/18 campaign that will see his side fight on four fronts, after finishing fourth in the Premier League last term.
The club’s primary targets include Southampton centre-back Virgil van Dijk and RB Leipzig midfielder Naby Keita, while Arsenal utility man Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain is also on the radar.
And Milner believes that is the calibre of player Klopp should be pursuing, in order to spur the rest of the squad on further.
“Liverpool is a top club, we’re a good squad of players and you’re going to attract top players,” he added.
“That’s what you want—the best players in and around the squad to push each other.
“The bigger the squad of top players you have, the more successful you’re going to be. The competition for places is exactly what you need all over the field.”
So far it seems unlikely Milner will have major competition for his role as starting left-back, however, with little in terms of concrete speculation over a new arrival.
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