Liverpool legend Jamie Carragher has warned Liverpool's attackers that the grass isn't greener away from Anfield, using the careers of Philippe Coutinho, Georginio Wijnaldum and Emre Can as examples that it's downhill once you depart Merseyside.
Mohamed Salah, Sadio mane and Roberto Firmino all see their contracts end after the conclusion of the 2022/23 campaign. The club have been in negotiations with Salah for months and are no nearer to reaching terms on a new deal, while Mane has been linked with a move away from the club this summer.
Firmino has struggled to stay fit this season and has seen Diogo Jota and January signing Luis Diaz replace him to great effect this season. Though he proved in the 2-1 win over Southampton on Tuesday night that he still has a major role to play in the first team, Carragher believes the decision makers at Anfield will let him leave on a free transfer once his contract expires next season.
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"I think Roberto Firmino may see his contract out and they may feel he's not getting enough games by the end of next season," Carragher told Sky Sports. "I don't think Liverpool will move him on and he may go for free at the end of next season, that's the way I see it."
When it comes to Mane, who reportedly has Bayern Munich and Paris Saint-Germain interested in his signature, the former Reds defender can't see him leaving Merseyside and envisages him putting pen to paper on a new contract, saying: "If I'm being honest, I think Sadio Mane will sign at some stage."
However, there was a stern warning to Salah, and the other two Liverpool stars, that leaving the current FA Cup and Carabao Cup winners could be a mistake as Coutinho, Wijnaldum and Can have failed to replicate the success they achieved under Jurgen Klopp at Liverpool since they left the club.
"Obviously I'm desperate for Mo Salah to sign and I think he should sign. He [Klopp] has turned good players into great players and Salah is one of them. He was a very good player and now he's become a superstar.
"Gini Wijnaldum was one of them. Coutinho was one of them. There's another one, Emre Can was not quite at that level, but these are three players who thought maybe they deserved more from Liverpool in terms of wages. They made a move and it's never been the same for them. I think that's a lesson for Mo Salah going forward.
"Not that he's not a great player, but this suits him, the Premier League. Jurgen Klopp suits him, this club suits him and this is where he's been a superstar and no where else before, he might do it somewhere else. But I think he should remember about two or three players who left Liverpool and thought the grass was greener, maybe wages wise or Wijnaldum going to PSG, and then you look at what Liverpool are doing this season."
