Liverpool icon slated, with Vinicius Junior a better inspiration for ex-Prem man's kids (original) (raw)

Troy Deeney has revealed he does not feel Mohamed Salah is “world class” and he’d rather his kids looked at what Real Madrid superstar Vinicius Junior does instead.

Salah has been one of the very best players in the Premier League since he joined Liverpool in 2017. Since then, he’s moved his way up to eighth on the all-time top-scorers list in the division, with 165 goals.

Though he is clearly one of the most iconic players in this generation of the Premier League, former Watford striker Deeney does not feel he’s world class, and says he’d encourage his kids to look at Real Madrid superstar Vinicius instead.

“I think Mohamed Salah is excellent, he’s a pivotal part of Liverpool and they should never have let it [his expiring contract] get to this situation. But I understand that there’s a financial structure around what they want to try and keep to,”he said on talkSPORT.

“My argument has always been that I just don’t think he’s world class. But world class is just a different opinion, what I think of world class is would I want my kids to play like that player? That’s what I think is world class.

“If I was asking my kids who want to be forwards, I would be saying I would like them to look at what Vinicius Junior does as opposed to Mohamed Salah.

“But his goals that he [Salah] scores, he scores an unbelievable amount of goals, he’s highly effective, but that’s just my opinion. He’s probably going to turn around and say, ‘Who the f*** is Troy?’ and fair play to him, but that’s my opinion.”

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Vinicius has moved past Salah

Though to most people Salah is world class, it could be fair to say Vinicius, at 24 years old, has moved past the Liverpool man in terms of their standing in the game.

Salah has never placed inside the top three in the Ballon d’Or, with his highest finish fifth in 2019 and 2022.

Vinicius, meanwhile, after finishing sixth in 2023, came second in 2024, and many felt he was robbed of the accolade.

He has a lot of years left to continue to place high on the list, whereas Salah, at 32 – eight years older than Vinicius – might not have long left at the top.

Liverpool round-up: Murillo move on rocks

Liverpool and Real Madrid have both been linked with Nottingham Forest centre-back Murillo of late, though the Midlands-based club will reportedly not entertain offers for him in January.

The Reds could also find it tricky to land Napoli winger Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, with Paris Saint-Germain said to have lodged an offer for him.

Liverpool are also on the hunt for AC Milan winger Christian Pulisic, with a move north of £50million potentially in the offing.

Meanwhile, it’s believed Trent Alexander-Arnold could be soon to pen a new deal at Anfield, with his current one running out at the end of the season, leading to danger from Real Madrid.

Vinicius’ season prior to Ballon d’Or snub

Vinicius Junior Real Madrid stats 2023/24