Key reason why £80m star is not the perfect Mohamed Salah replacement as Bayern Munich open contract talks

Leroy Sané’s name has been linked with a move to Liverpool across recent days, with some believing he could be a perfect Mohamed Salah replacement.

Sané, 27, is currently enjoying his best form for quite some time at Bayern Munich under Thomas Tuchel, netting seven times in all games in all competitions.

Once upon a time, he was one of the Premier League’s best wingers at Manchester City, dazzling defences with his quick feet, incredible pace and eye for goal and that version of Sane would be a suitable replacement, but an ACL injury suffered in 2019 derailed his ascent at that time. Despite that, he’s now he’s being linked with a return.

According to Football Insider, Bayern Munich are opening talks to tie down Sané amid ‘fears of strong interest’ from Liverpool; his current deal expires in 2025.

Of course, the interest from Saudi Arabia during the summer for Salah ensured fans had some doubt over the future of one of their best players. And the reports that they will return next summer to try and prise him away will make fans nervous.

Potential replacements are few and far between given his incredible ability and record at the club, but Sane is no longer an option given his age. Despite that, he is in brilliant form this year - as he currently has completed more take-ons (36) than any other player in Europe’s top seven divisions so far this season.

He was also close to joining Liverpool before City back in 2016, which adds extra weight to the story: “Yes, I was also talking with them. Jurgen was calling me too, talking to me. That was before I joined City,” Sane confirmed to the Guardian in 2018. “He did a good job at [Borussia] Dortmund – I met him when he was there. He’s a good guy, nice guy - honest. He [has] worked well with Liverpool.”

The current Sane is set to turn 28 in January and would cost a fortune (the Mirror are reporting £80m) and he would make a good option, but it is unlikely they would fork out a huge fee for a player of that age when it simply isn’t in their current squad building plans.

Wataru Endo at 30 is the exception, but Dominik Szoboszlai (22) Ryan Gravenberch (21) Alexis Mac Allister (24) is a clear sign of their profiles.