Ex-Arsenal boss Unai Emery explains why he snubbed transfer for Mohamed Salah

Unai Emery has worked with many clubs throughout his decorated managerial career, and if things had panned out differently, he could have prevented Mohamed Salah from ending up at Liverpool

Unai Emery has explained why he decided not to go ahead with a transfer for Mohamed Salah.

The Egyptian has been a sensation at Anfield since joining from AS Roma back in 2017 for £37million, scoring 218 goals and bagging 96 assists for the Reds across 361 games. The 32-year-old also helped Liverpool win their only Premier League title to date under Jurgen Klopp in the 2019/20 campaign, as the Anfield elite ran away with the league, finishing 18 points ahead of Pep Guardiola's Manchester City.

Elsewhere, Salah has lifted an FA Cup, a League Cup, a Charity Shield and a coveted Champions League trophy – all while claiming three Premier League Golden Boots and a prestigious Player of the Year award in his maiden season with the club. However, Emery could have substantially diverted Salah's path when he was the manager of PSG and the star was still at Roma – ultimately choosing to opt out of pursuing the winger.

His reason? The Spanish mastermind had doubts pertaining to ex-Chelsea flop Salah's skills. Speaking to talkSPORT in 2018, Emery admitted: "We spoke about the possibility to sign Salah to Paris Saint-Germain when he was playing at Roma.

"We had some doubts – and then he signed for Liverpool and these doubts he has broken at Liverpool. Now, if you are speaking about the five top players in the world, one is Salah."

Salah kicked off his career at Al Mokawloon before making the move to Basel in 2012. 20 goals in 79 stars captured the attention of then Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho in January 2014, who snapped up the at the time rising talent for a cushy £11million.

However, Salah was not utilised by the Blues, making just 19 appearances for the west Londoners and instead spending loan spells with the likes of Fiorentina and Roma. He was made a permanent member of the Roma squad in 2016 after impressing in Serie A, but Klopp spotted something in the forward that Mourinho had failed to, bringing him to Anfield just a year later – and the rest, as they say, is history.

After retiring from playing in 2004, Emery kicked off his managerial career with Lorca Deportivo before moving on to the likes of Almeira, Valencia, Spartak Moscow, Sevilla and PSG – where he lifted two Coupe de Frances, Coupe de la Ligues, and Throphees des Champions a-piece, as well as a Ligue 1 title in the 2017/18 season.

He made the move to Arsenal in 2018, but spent just one season at the Emirates Stadium before he was ultimately succeeded by Mikel Arteta – the boots of Arsene Wenger unfortunately proved too big to fill for Emery. After parting ways with the Gunners, Emery spent two years at Villarreal before returning to the Premier League with now high-flying Aston Villa.

The tactician managed to steer the Villains to a fourth-place finish last season, and has also worked wonders in the current campaign with hopes of even challenging for the title as it stands, while they're flourishing in the Champions League too. The 52-year-old will no doubt have his eyes fully fixed on his old side's clash this afternoon (Sunday) as they play host to Liverpool at the Emirates Stadium (4.30pm).

Liverpool have been in impeccable form this season, constantly battling it out with Manchester City for the Premier League's top spot. They have managed seven wins from their first eight games, dispatching of the likes of Manchester United and Chelsea with ease.

The only blemish on their campaign to date came in the form of a shock 1-0 loss to Nottingham Forest earlier in the season, unable to respond to Callum Hudson-Odoi's late strike. Arsenal, meanwhile, will hope to catch up with the Reds after a decent start to their own season.

They currently sit on 17 points to Liverpool's 21, so they will be unable to pass them in the standings with a victory today – however, it will go a long way in helping them ultimately eclipse the side as the season goes on should the Gunners slip up.

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